


Time Will Tell

by siophiefandom



Series: Time Trilogy [1]
Category: Pretty Little Liars
Genre: F/F, paily
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-03
Updated: 2016-07-03
Packaged: 2018-07-19 18:42:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 31
Words: 71,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7373152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siophiefandom/pseuds/siophiefandom
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emily and Paige meet when they're assigned as roommates at Stanford. Emily has a girlfriend back home. Paige has a boyfriend back home. Will these two get together? Time will tell. AU Paily, with supporting roles and cameos from other PLL characters.</p><p>originally posted to fanfiction dot net, January 1 - 31, 2015</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The B-Word

"So, let's check her out on facebook! See what kind of _wingman_ she'll be!"

"Pru, first of all, I already know who she is. I mean every swimmer in the _state_ knows who Emily Fields is."

"But you've never facebook-stalked her?"

"No, because, second of all, I don't need a wingman. Sean and I are very happy, remember? I'm not going to Stanford to meet cute guys."

"Well, that doesn't mean you can't – holy fuck! She's fricken hot, Paige!"

"Pru, just send her the friend request, okay? We're going to be roommates, so we may as well get to know each other."

"Yeah, and that's why I'm looking through her facebook. Okay, all her friends are hot. I'm not sure you can sit with them, Paige. Ooh – here are her prom pics. Great looking gown, and – oh. Shit."

"What? You don't approve of her boyfriend?"

"Um, yeah. About that – it's not a boyfriend."

"GASP! She's… the L word?" Paige mocked a stunned reaction.

"I'm serious, Paige!"

"So what? Since when do you care that someone's gay?"

"Not just _someone_! She's going to be your roommate, Paige."

"So?"

"So, she's going to be living in the same room with you. Watching you get dressed. Watching you while you sleep."

"God, seriously, Pru? That's what you think lesbians do? They're just waiting for the opportunity to see a girl naked?"

"I'm just saying, if I were rooming with a hot guy, I'd definitely be grabbing eyefuls. Handfuls, too!"

"Pru, we're not having this conversation. You know that there were gays on the swim team, right? Do you think that they were creeping around in the locker room the whole time?"

"That's just my point! There are gays on the swim team! So why did they put her with you? Wouldn't they, like, ask if you were gay and put you with someone else gay, so that it's not awkward?"

"There were some questions about roommate selection – religious, sexual preference, stuff like that. I put that I was okay with anyone. I can get along with anyone!"

"Why would you do that, Paige? That's probably why they put you two together!"

"No, they probably put us together because we're both from the same state and we both went to the finals. We'll probably be on the same training schedules, so it just makes sense that we live together. I mean, they probably assumed that we already know each other."

"Well, let's just hope that she gets a girlfriend right away and spends all of her time in her girlfriend's room."

Paige looked over at her laptop. "It says that she's in a relationship with Maya St. Germain."

"Yeah. I looked her up. She's going to Danby next year. Those long distance things never work out."

"Uh, Pru!" Paige gave her friend a punch on the shoulder. "What about Sean and me? We're going to be long-distance, remember?"

* * *

Emily sat down to lunch with her three best friends. "So, Spencer. I got my roommate assignment at Stanford."

"Wow, Emily! It's all starting to feel real now, isn't it?"

"Yeah. But guess who she is."

"Who?"

"Paige McCullers!"

"No way! She's going to Stanford?"

"Apparently so!"

"Well, all I can say is, you'd better sleep with one eye open!"

"Who's Paige McCullers?" Aria asked.

"She's one of the top swimmers in the state. I've competed against her a couple of times. She's definitely hardcore."

"Yeah," Spencer agreed, "Hardcore is an understatement. Paige the enforcer. We named a penalty after her."

"Oh! She's the one who…" Hanna began before Spencer cut her off with a sharp glare. "Well, that's good, Emily! If she's as badass as Spencer makes her out to be, no one will mess with you! You'll have your own built in bodyguard when the shit goes down!"

"And just why do you think I need a bodyguard?"

"Because you'll be freshmen. You know all the hazing and stuff. Besides, it's California! That's where all the gangsta stuff comes from!"

"Hanna," Spencer chided, "I highly doubt that the gangster culture runs rampant at Stanford." Turning her attention to Emily, she replied, "Trust me, the biggest thing you'll need to worry about will be Paige McCullers."

"Oh, Spencer. We'll be on the same team."

"Wait, you mean she's…"

"No, Hanna, that's not what I mean. I mean I won't be competing against her, so there's no reason for her to threaten me."

"You'll be competing for spots on the team, Emily." Spencer reminded her.

Aria linked arms with Emily. "Guys. Stop trying to scare her. Emily's getting away from all the drama of Rosewood and high school. Let's just wish her well. Emily, you're going to have a great year. And I predict that you and Paige are going to end up being best friends."

"Wait – not _best_ friends!" Hanna interjected.

"Of course not, Hanna. You'll always be my best friend," Emily replied perfunctorily.

Hanna hugged her. "Damn right, I am!"

* * *

"Is it okay if I bring my girlfriend?" Emily was a little nervous as she asked this question. She and Paige had facebook-chatted a couple of times and gotten to know each other a little bit. They were on the phone discussing meeting for lunch in Philadelphia. The subject of Emily's sexuality had never really come up, although Emily certainly made no secret of it. She knew that Paige had to know about Maya, because Maya was all over her facebook. Still, this was Emily's first time bringing up the subject, and she wasn't sure how Paige would react.

"As long as I can bring my boyfriend," Paige said, not missing a beat. "He's almost completely housetrained, I promise!"

Emily laughed. It felt good, knowing that Paige didn't see gender as an issue. That had been one of her biggest worries about living in a dorm with a roommate. She well remembered the reaction from some of her teammates when she had been outed in her sophomore year.

"So," Paige continued, "There's a place down on Callowhill near my dad's office in Philly. It's really expensive for dinner, but, if we meet for lunch, it's reasonable."

Sean and Paige decided to take the train into the city for their lunch date with Emily and Maya. Paige used the time to brief him on the whole roommate situation, worried that he would react the way that Pru had reacted and say something to embarrass himself – and her.

"So, you're really okay with this roommate?"

"Sean, there's nothing to be okay with. We're roommates. We're adults. It's not as though she's going to try to recruit me."

"You don't know that."

"See? That's exactly what I'm talking about. Don't say ignorant shit like that at lunch, okay?"

"What? I'm just saying…"

"Besides, this is a positive. I'm going to college to broaden my mind, broaden my experiences. I don't want to hang out only with people who are like me. I want to experience all the diversity of college life."

"Wait, you mean, you're – have you had _gay thoughts_?"

"No, Sean. Seriously?" Paige couldn't believe how small her boyfriend's view of the world is. "I mean I'm sure that Emily's had struggles and challenges simply because she's openly gay in a small town. I've never experienced that. I want to know what it's like. I want to see a lot of different perspectives – people who've had to face racial discrimination, people who came to this country just to go to Stanford. I haven't had to face a lot of that. I want to learn from them."

"So, Emily will be, like, your social experiment?"

"Emily will be my friend. And I hope to have lots of friends who see the world from a different perspective than I do. That's what college is all about!"

Sean got quiet. "So, when you come back, will I still be enough for you?"

Paige gave her boyfriend a kiss. "Yes, Sean. We're both going to grow over these four years. We're both going to be different, but we're not going to do it a vacuum. We've always worked on our relationship, and we have to continue to do that."

"What if we find out that we're too different?"

"Then, let's promise each other that we'll still be friends." Sean didn't look convinced. "Sean, that can happen whether we're 3000 miles away or we're living under the same roof. I love you. We've grown so much over the past couple of years. I don't see that changing, but, let's face it, we don't know what the next four years has in store. Let's just enjoy the ride, okay?"

* * *

Paige and Sean were standing outside of the Rose Tattoo when she got the text from Emily saying that they were looking for parking. A couple of minutes later, she saw a couple approaching and knew that it had to be Emily and Maya. They greeted each other with hugs. "This place looks like a dive on the outside, but, trust me, it's nice on the inside."

The four were escorted to a table where they placed their orders. Paige and Emily hit it off immediately, swapping war stories of first times in the pool, diabolical coaches, and summer swim camps. Sean did his best to engage Maya in conversation, but she seemed a little aloof. And clingy. Sean put it down to sadness because her girlfriend was going to be leaving for the other side of the country in a month. He finally gave up trying to draw her out of her shell and just played with his silverware till the food, mercifully, arrived.

"So," Maya chimed in at a lull in the conversation, "I heard that they call you the Barracuda!"

Paige almost dropped her fork. Sean rubbed her shoulder to calm her down. Emily shot her girlfriend a glare. "Oh," Maya backtracked, "I'm sorry. I just – I thought it was a joke."

Paige swallowed the food that was in her mouth. She put her hands at her side to calm herself. "No, it's okay. I – it's true, I tend to get a little competitive in the pool. It's not the thing that I'm proudest of. I guess it's just my Dad – constantly drilling it into me since I was a kid – you have to be the best; take no prisoners."

"Well, that's the kind of teammate you want," Emily said, trying to redeem her girlfriend's comment so that it didn't injure Paige. "You may swim like a barracuda, but you were always a good sport whenever we faced off. Win or lose, you were always the first person from the other team to come up and congratulate me after we raced."

Paige smiled, raising her water glass. She appreciated what Emily was trying to do, but she hated the fact that her girlfriend saw her as a barracuda. One reason that she chose Stanford was so that she could get a fresh start, away from her reputation. It seemed that her reputation was going to be right there with her, sleeping in the next bed.

* * *

"What the hell were you thinking, Maya? You say two words all throughout lunch, and then you pull that barracuda comment out of your ass?"

"I said I was sorry. I didn't know that it was a bad thing. I don't know the whole swimmer lingo!"

"Exactly. So where did you even come up with that word?"

"From Spencer."

"From Spencer? And you're going to pretend that you didn't know that it was a bad thing?"

"What? I didn't?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Maya. You know how Spencer feels about her. _I_ know how Spencer feels about her, so I can only imagine what the two of you were talking about!"

"Emily, why do we have to fight all the time? I just made a mistake, and I said I'm sorry! Paige was okay with it!"

"Paige was _not_ okay with it, Maya." Emily paused, trying to cool down. " _Nobody_ wants to be called a barracuda."

After Emily dropped Maya off at home, she did some yoga, took a quick run, and grabbed a shower. When she finished, she checked facebook to see whether or not Paige was on.

**Emily Fields:** Hey…..

**Paige McCullers:** Hey.

**Emily Fields:** So, I guess I should ask you, do you know Spencer Hastings? Plays field hockey for Rosewood High?

**Paige McCullers:** Oh, yeah. Spencer. I don't think that I'm on her Christmas card list. :P

**Emily Fields:** Yeah.  
 **Emily Fields:** So. Evidently, she and Maya were talking.  
 **Emily Fields:** Hence the B-word.

**Paige McCullers:** K

**Emily Fields:** I mean, I didn't want you to think that she got it from me. Not that it's any better coming from Spencer. Just – idk what I mean. Sorry – she should never have said it.  & that's not how I see you.

**Paige McCullers:** Ok. Thx for letting me know.

Paige felt better knowing that Maya hadn't heard that word from Emily.

**Emily Fields:** I meant what I said, though. I respect your competitive spirit, but I really appreciate your sportsmanship.  
 **Emily Fields:** In and out of the pool.

**Paige McCullers:** Thx, Em. That means a lot.

Emily put her fingers over those two letters on the screen and smiled. Why did it feel so good to have Paige use that nickname?


	2. The Back Story

With the finishing touches put on Paige and Emily's room, they finally took a moment to relax. It helped that they were able to do a lot of the work in advance, having decided on colors and decorations by e-mail and Skype before they left for school. Paige even geeked out and did a 3D computer model of the room that they used to move things around and get them the way that they wanted. Minus a few adjustments for measuring errors, everything went pretty smoothly.

That's the way Paige liked things: No surprises. She was about to get one from Emily, though, who started their post-decorating conversation with the question, "So, this gay/straight thing, it's really not going to be a problem for you?"

Paige just laughed, "Well, as long as you're not bringing your conquests home every night, I guess I'm okay with it."

"Paige. I'm being serious! I just don't want this to turn into something awkward."

Paige went over and sat next to Emily on her bed. She wrapped her arm around her. "I'm serious, too. I see no reason for things to get awkward. I'll make a deal with you, though. If I start to feel weird, I'll tell you. And if you start to feel weird, you tell me."

"Deal!" Emily laughed.

Paige reached over to the bedside table next to the bed and grabbed the picture of Emily with Maya that was resting there. "So, how long have you two been together?"

"Almost two years."

"And was she the first… person you dated?"

Emily laughed. "Are you asking whether or not I used to date guys?"

"Oh, no, no, no." Paige had no reason to feel guilty, but she did. She really hadn't meant to put Emily on the spot. "No, I just didn't want to assume."

"No, I understand," Emily assured her. "I'd say that Maya was my first real relationship. My first crush was a girl who just… well, she used my feelings to her advantage. She gave me just enough attention to make me feel that I had a chance with her."

"Wow, that sucks."

"It really does." Emily felt herself starting to get emotional, so she moved the conversation past Alison DiLaurentis. "After that, I dated this guy, basically because he asked me, you know? It was just nice to be with someone who was interested in me and who made me feel beautiful and loved. Especially after the experience with Alsion - my crush. And everyone else was pairing off, so…"

"I know how _that_ goes."

"Yeah. I think I might still be with him, if it weren't for Maya. Maya let me know what it was to feel… I mean, that feeling of butterflies that I had with Alison? I never really had that with Ben. I didn't know that I was supposed to. I just thought that I felt that way about Alison because it was 'forbidden love.' So, Maya reawakened those feelings in me, and I realized that I wasn't really in love with Ben."

"How did that go down?"

"He didn't take it all that well. You know – 14 year old boy. Worried about what it means for his manhood that his girlfriend turned gay."

"Yeah, I guess I could see where that would be a lot for a 14 year old boy to process."

"Yeah. And the thing is, when I think about it, I could still have stayed in that relationship with him if Maya hadn't come along, you know? Just because I didn't know any better."

Paige got silent for a while. She kind of knew what it was like to stay in a relationship when there weren't any butterflies. "Well, I'm glad that you found someone to give you those butterflies." After an awkward silence, Paige raised an imaginary glass. "Here's to butterflies!"

"Funny thing about butterflies. They don't really last, do they?" Emily looked off into space. She quickly recovered. "So, tell me about you and Sean!"

"Yeah, Sean. I don't know. It just kind of happened, you know? Like, it was just inevitable. He was the captain of the baseball team, biggest jock in school, so it just made sense that we ended up together."

"Don't the jocks usually end up with cheerleaders?"

"That's the football team! Anyway, so, yeah, we ended up together. He's a great guy. Really nice guy. He's, like, the _right_ guy, you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Like, I always did the right thing – got the grades, got team captain, got the clean-cut guy, got into the right school." Paige didn't know why she was being so honest.

"Trouble in paradise?"

"He told me that he's afraid that I'll outgrow him over these next four years. The thing is, just between you and me, it already feels as if he doesn't fit."

Emily linked arms with Paige. Paige put her head on Emily's shoulder. "So, what are you going to do about it?"

Paige let out a deep sigh. "I don't know. I honestly do not know."

Emily nodded her head and stroked Paige's cheek. There was a moment of silence before Emily tried to lighten the mood. "And this isn't awkward at all for you, McCullers?"

Paige laughed. She jumped up off the bed as if Emily had leprosy and said, using a voice that was a couple of octaves lower than her real voice, "No homo, bro! No homo!"

Paige sat next to Emily and linked their arms again. "Is that the kind of reaction that you got from your friends when you came out?"

"Oh, shit. Are we doing this? The coming out story?"

"We don't have to if you don't want. I was just curious."

Emily gave Paige's bicep a squeeze. "No, it's okay. My friends were cool. It was seriously like no big deal with them. It was my teammates – some of my teammates – who started acting weird. You know, acting as if they had to cover up whenever I was in the locker room." Emily shook her head in disbelief at the memory. "You learn the ones to avoid. Learn to be the last person in the shower. Learn to get your laps in early or over the weekend."

Paige thought back to the locker rooms in high school. There was awkwardness and ostracism when girls on her team had come out. Some parents pulled their daughters off the team, insisting that there would have to be separate changing rooms. "It's hard to believe that people could be so petty. I mean, I can sort of see young kids being confused and feeling weird, but I know how some of the parents in my school reacted when they found out that there were gays in our locker room."

"Oh yeah! I definitely got the backlash from parents! One of them even complained that I was getting special treatment because I was gay. I mean, as if!"

Paige drew her roommate in for a hug. "That must've been so hard for you."

"It was," Emily replied. "I was lucky to have good friends who stood by me. I mean, my coach stood up for me, too, but my friends were always there for me. I miss them. Shit! Why am I going on and on about this stuff? We're in California! We're in college! We're on top of the world!"

After the first week of practice, Emily discovered how wrong that last statement had been. She and Paige quickly learned what it was like to go from being at the top of their class to being on the low end of the totem pole. Everything about swimming at Stanford was bigger. On the plus side, the facilities and the perks were much better. On the other side, the demands that were made on them were so much greater. By the end of the week, they were physically exhausted and emotionally drained – and this was before the added burden of classes kicked in. "We're going to have to get serious about how we manage our time," Paige told her. Emily gave her a tired smile and a nod of agreement. It occurred to her that Paige had the advantage in this area. Paige was used to scheduling her life and to training hard for swimming and field hockey. With Emily, swimming came easily. She didn't take the sport lightly, but she never had to buckle down and work hard at it. She was able excel even putting in a lot less work than most of her peers. Even with all the drama and distractions of Rosewood, she was still able to break school records and win championships. After only the first week, it was clear that the same wouldn't be true at Stanford.


	3. Blues in the Night

When Emily heard Paige's key in the lock, she tried to pull herself together. She quickly put the box of tissues back on the desk and tossed her pile of used tissues into the trash. Emily didn't want Paige to know that something was wrong, but even if Paige hadn't been able to pick up on her puffy eyes and red cheeks, the way that Emily was trying desperately to act normal would have made her suspicious.

It was Sunday night, Emily and Maya's Skype night, and Paige had gone to the study. Their room wasn't that big, and Paige wanted to give Emily space – physical and emotional – so that she could speak freely with her girlfriend. Paige thought that she had given them plenty of time to talk, so she was surprised at the way that Emily was scurrying around when she got in. She couldn't help wonder, _Did I interrupt some kind of Skype-sex?_

"Sorry," Paige offered, "Should I give you a few minutes?"

"No," Emily replied, inhaling what was in her nose rather than letting Paige see her grab a tissue. "You're fine. We finished up a while ago."

Paige noticed her puffy eyes and gave her a sad smile. "You really miss her, don't you?"

Emily let out a long sigh. "Honestly, Paige, I wish that I missed her more." Paige looked confused. "I mean, she's my girlfriend, right? And I _should_ miss her, shouldn't I?"

"Don't you?"

"I don't even know. The past few months, it seems that we just fight all the time. And whenever we Skype, we end up sniping at each other – or just cutting the session short so that we don't argue. And, after tonight's session, I was just thinking: I don't really miss her. I mean, I don't really even think about her during the week. Shouldn't I miss her?"

"Well, we've been so busy…"

"But that's just it! So much is going on in my life, shouldn't I be excited to tell my girlfriend? I mean, things happen, and I can't wait to tell you about them…" Paige furrowed her eyebrows, slightly taken aback. Emily quickly added "or Hanna – or Aria, or Spence. Why not Maya? And when I _do_ think about her, it's just like, 'Well, what are we going to fight about next time?'"

Paige sat down on the bed and let Emily rest her head on her shoulder. "Hey, Em. Don't make too much out of it. Every relationship has its ups and downs. We're under a lot of pressure here, so, of course it's going to put stress on our relationships. Stress is just like a magnifying glass for any of the other problems that are going on in our lives. Just give it some time for things to settle down here. I'll bet you find that things settle back into that comfort zone with Maya, too." Paige had no idea what the hell she was saying. She just didn't want to see Emily sad like that.

"So, how come I'm not lashing out at my other friends, or at you?"

"Because you're not dating us, silly!" Emily looked up at her, confused. "You feel safe with Maya. You don't have to hide your emotions from her. Let me guess: When you first came out, you and your mom got into all kinds of hissy fights." Emily nodded into Paige's shoulder. "But you and your dad – maybe you guys fought, but it never reached the level that it did with your mom, right?"

"Well, yeah, because my dad understood me more than my mom."

"Okay, that's part of it, but, in general, mom-daughter fights are a lot more intense than dad-daughter fights, because the daughters feel more secure in their mothers' love. Deep down inside, they know that, whatever happens, their moms will stick by them. So they don't feel that they have to pull punches with their moms. And, just as deep, there's the fear inside them that their dads won't stay - fear that makes them less willing to risk lashing out at dads."

"Okay, McCullers," Emily said, separating her body from her roommate's, "That's enough Psych 101 for tonight. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing."

"Okay, I'll admit it: I don't know what the hell I'm talking about. But, I do know that you love Maya. It might not seem as if it's working in the heat of the moment, but don't give up on the two of you. You don't want to make big decisions when you're under stress. Just, promise me that you'll stick it out until things settle down a bit with swimming and classes."

Emily nodded her head and, standing, pulled Paige to her feet and into a hug. She appreciated Paige's advice, but, really, the last six months could hardly be considered the heat of the moment.

For Paige's part, her relationship with Sean was suffering from benign neglect. Paige convinced herself that she was doing what she had always done: Focusing on her sport and her academics first, and on her relationship as time permitted. Sean knew that about her from the outset. She gave him just enough attention to keep the flames alive. If she were honest with herself, she would see that she was only doing that out of pride, not wanting Sean's prediction about her going away and leaving him to come true. Part of her longed for what Emily had – someone whom she could fight with; someone whom she cared enough about for it to spark _some_ kind of emotion.

She never let herself think that way for too long. There were always more important things to occupy her time.

* * *

Paige heard her name in the middle of the night. It sounded as though Emily had been crying. Paige sat up in bed. "What time is it?"

"It's just after two."

"Are you just getting in?" Paige motioned for Emily to come over. When she sat down on the bed, Paige pulled her down so that she was lying next to her. Emily instinctively snuggled into her, her head on her shoulder, one arm tucked between the two of them, and the other resting, palm down, on the oversized shirt that Paige was sleeping in. She told Paige that she had gone for a walk and had, apparently, lost track of time. She and Maya had had a very tense conversation, and Emily didn't know why things should be so hard. She really wanted to take Paige's advice and hold on, but shouldn't there be more to a relationship than just holding on and making do?

Paige gulped at the question. It hit a bit close to home. She often found herself thinking those same thoughts about her relationship with Sean. Emily misread the gulp as discomfort on Paige's part at the way that they were lying together in Paige's bed. Only then did she realize that she had absent-mindedly bunched up a swatch of Paige's shirt as she clenched her fingers around it. She recoiled in a panic. "Holy shit, Paige! I'm sorry! I didn't mean…"

Paige used her strong left arm to pull Emily back in to the snuggle. "Don't be an idiot," she said in a straightforward tone. "I'm here for you."

Emily allowed herself to relax once again in Paige's arms. She felt herself starting to cry. Not over Maya, over everything. As a college student, she was supposed to be having the best years of her life, but everything was hard. Her relationship was hard. Swimming was hard. Classwork was hard. Being away from her family was hard. Living with a roommate was… Well, she was expecting that to be hard, but it was turning out to be pretty easy. She looked up at Paige. Paige wasn't trying to fix her. She wasn't telling her that everything was going to be okay. She wasn't telling her anything at all. She was just holding her in her protective arms and letting her feel what she felt. Her straight roommate who had it all together was just holding her and letting her be. She couldn't remember the last time that she felt free just to be who she needed to be, without worrying about what someone else thought. Peace started to come over her, and she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

In Paige's first dream, she was the captain of an old-timey, wooden galleon, leading her men as they fought off an onslaught of pirates. With the threat repulsed and her crew safe, she stood with one leg up on the bow of the ship, staring off into the boundless horizon with a huge smile on her face, her girl tucked under her arm.

In the next dream, she was the outsider in the old west who rode in on a white horse and cleared all the outlaws from the town. With order restored and the citizens safe, she rode off into the sunset, her girl tucked under her arm. Somehow, the two of them side by side on horseback was possible, in the dreamspace.

In her third dream, she was a spy, recovering the briefcase with the codes to dismantle the enemy's infrastructure and make the world safe for democracy. With the briefcase secured by a pair of handcuffs to her wrist, she dashed off in the back of a cab headed to the airfield with a satisfied smirk on her face, her girl tucked under her arm.

In her final dream, she was the moon, spinning and spinning, ever faster, until she broke free from her orbit, careened beyond Earth and Mars, and, ultimately, beyond Neptune and Pluto as she headed deeper and deeper into the far reaches space, with a smile across her cratered face and her girl moon tucked under her arm.

Paige woke up to the tickling sensation of Emily's hair under her nostrils. She inhaled deeply, reveling in the scent of mango shampoo with that ever-present hint of chlorine. Paige squinted so that she could read the time off Emily's clock on the other side of the room. It was almost 9:30. She had fallen asleep with Emily in her arms, and they had spent the rest of the night that way. She lightly brushed Emily's hair from underneath her nose, moving it off of Emily's face in the same motion. As she did, she allowed herself to deposit one kiss onto Emily's temple. Emily sighed contentedly in her sleep and tightened her grip around Paige's middle. _She must be having pleasant dreams_ , Paige thought, feeling a little guilty for taking advantage of the situation. She could feel her arm starting to fall asleep under Emily's neck, but she didn't want to disengage it and risk waking Emily. She didn't want Emily to freak out and feel bad about having spent the night in Paige's bed. Mostly, she didn't want Emily to leave the bed.

It was Sunday, and they didn't have to be anywhere, so Paige just let Emily sleep. Before long, when she felt Emily start to stir, Paige started breathing deeply; pretending to be asleep in order to spare Emily any awkwardness. She felt Emily sit up a little; felt Emily's hair swish from one side to another as she got her bearings and realized where she had spent the night. She felt Emily carefully untangle their limbs as she slowly climbed out of her bed. And then she felt Emily's body lean over hers and felt warm lips grazing her cheek before whispered a barely audible "Thank you" into her ear, her hand and her hair falling lightly on Paige's shoulder. Paige listened as Emily crept over to her dresser to grab some clothes and a towel for the shower. When Paige heard the door open and close, she rolled over onto her side and let out a deep sigh.

She needed to call Pru.


	4. Best Friends Weigh In

"Holy fuck, Paige! I told you that this was going happen! She totally _turned_ you!"

"Jesus, Pru! First of all, nobody's turning anybody. Well, first of all, that's not even how it works. Would you read a pamphlet, or something?"

"She turned you, Paige! She turned you, and you don't even know that you've been turned! She's like a vampire! She sank her teeth into you, and you don't even know that you've been bitten!"

"Second of all," Paige continued, trying her best to remain rational, determined to get through her well-thought-out argument despite Pru's ranting, "I can assure you that Emily doesn't even think of me that way. The whole point of last night was that she's in love with Maya."

"Yeah, yeah. That's what _you_ say! Let's see what facebook says."

"Pru, I'm not going to facebook-stalk my roommate. And you're not, either."

"Too late! I already checked Emily's facebook. Relationship status is still 'In a relationship' and she still has their prom picture up. Moving on to Maya's – holy shit!"

"What?"

"Well, her relationship status hasn't changed, but her profile picture is now just a selfie in a car. And she posted this status." Pru read it in a wooden monotone. "'People dont see wutz right in front of them. If u dont cherish what u got n u think somethin betters coming u gunna lose it all otr.'"

"Otr?"

"'On the reals,' Paige. God, try to keep up!"

"Shit, Pru!"

"What?"

"Emily's got so much on her plate right now. She's totally overwhelmed by this whole college transition. And she feels so alone. If she sees that status – if she's already seen it – it's going to break her!"

"And you just want to take her into your big, strong arms and protect her, don't you?" Pru asked melodramatically.

"Oh, fuck you, Pru! I always feel so much better after talking to you!" Paige was baffled by how well Pru was able to read her thoughts. She hadn't even told her about all of the dreams from the night before and how they each ended with Emily in her arms. But she wasn't falling for Emily, was she? How could she? She was in love with Ben. And Emily was in love with Maya. They were both just going through a rough time, and it was only natural that they should lean on each other. They were bonding. As friends. And roommates.

"Um – HELLO! Paige? Are you there?"

"Yeah, Pru, I'm still here."

"So, are you going to do it?"

"Uh… Do what, again?"

"Damn it, Paige! How long have I just been in Paige Land? You do this all the time – call me up because you want to talk to yourself, and you don't even listen when I dole out all this expert advice!"

Paige laughed into the phone. "Yeah, you love me, Pru!"

"And don't you forget it, McCullers! It's just too bad that _you_ love Emily!" Pru teased.

Paige laughed nervously. Her best friend knew her entirely too well.

But even if she allowed herself to think that she had feelings for Emily, and, even less plausible, that Emily had feelings for her, what then? Paige could give a shit about the whole gay/straight/bi thing. She may not ever have felt attracted to a woman before, but it wasn't as if she had ever closed off that possibility. No, what was bothering her was the implications on two established, long-term relationships. It was just so cliché: Two people go to the other side of the country and end up finding each other, leaving their heartbroken exes in their wake. Everyone tells the love story, but no one tells the story of the broken hearts.

Paige was getting caught up in her thoughts again. She texted Pru:

**Paige:** Hey, Dr. Drew – I mean Dr. Pru. What was that excellent advice that I totally zoned out on before you hung up on me, anyway?"

**Pru:** haha. I just said that you have to talk to her. You have to find out what you're dealing with here.  
 **Pru:** But you already know that.

Paige did know. What she didn't know was how. She didn't know even what she was feeling, and it wasn't fair for her to use Emily as a sounding board while she worked it out. And she was really worried about how Maya's status update would affect Emily, on top of everything else that Emily was dealing with. But how could she bring that up without admitting that she was creeping around on Emily's girlfriend's facebook? Her phone buzzed with another text from Pru.

**Pru:** Turned you! :P

Paige was pulled from her introspection when she heard Emily outside the door. Paige quickly got up and grabbed her shower gear. Emily smiled tentatively as she entered, feeling somewhat awkward about having spent the night cuddled up next to her roommate in bed. Paige was becoming intoxicated by the scent of mango that washed over her as Emily entered the room - the same scent that she had been inhaling in Emily's hair earlier that morning. She spat out, "I'm heading off there, now," gesturing to Emily's shower kit. "We'll go find some brunch when I get back?" Emily nodded and ducked past Paige into the room.

Brunch was normal. It almost seemed too normal. No mention was made of last night's drama and sleeping arrangements as the roommates talked swim times, training schedules, and study and homework plans. There were no awkward pauses where either of them could bring up what had happened. Their meal was drawing to a close, and Paige felt her opportunity slipping away. She knew that it was just going to eat away at her if they didn't at least acknowledge what had happened, so she decided that she had to say something. Before she could, though, Emily's phone buzzed. Paige caught the look of concern – fear? – that crossed Emily's face when she slid her phone unlocked. Once she opened the text, her eyes brightened. _That's good_ , Paige thought, _At least she's happy._ Paige figured that Emily was afraid when she saw that Maya had texted her, but that whatever Maya had texted had made her feel better.

Emily turned her phone around to show Paige a picture of a woman whom Paige recognized as Emily's mom with her arm around a man in Army fatigues. "That's my Mom and Dad. Apparently, my Dad surprised my Mom by showing up at home on temporary duty back in PA." Paige took the phone from Emily's hand and smiled at the picture before she handed it back. Emily texted something in reply and said, "My Mom _never_ texts. When I saw that it was from her, I panicked. I mean, my Dad's not deployed anymore, but he's still on an Army base, and you never know what can happen." Emily wiped away a tear that had begun to stray down her cheek. Paige reached across the table and took hold of Emily's other hand. Emily smiled, shaking her head. "Sorry."

"No, don't be sorry. I can't imagine what that must be like."

"My Dad means everything to me." Paige squeezed her hand. Emily continued, "Listen – thanks for being there for me this morning when I came in. And thanks for not being – you know… well, thanks. It really helped."

"Hey, Em." Emily couldn't help smiling as she heard that name and looked up to see the sincere look that Paige was giving her. "I'm always going to be there for you. That's what friends are for, right?" Emily's heart broke a little, but she didn't let it show. Of course. Paige was just being a good friend. Emily knew Paige that was straight and in love – if you could call it that – with Ben. Of course, Paige thought that letting her cry herself to sleep on her shoulder and holding her all night long was just something that friends do. Emily pulled her hand away from Paige's and gave her a genuine smile. _At least I have a friend,_ she thought. _God, how stupid am I, falling for a straight girl?_

* * *

"So, how stupid am I, Hanna? Falling for a straight girl." Emily was sitting on a bench in the open quad behind the dorm. She didn't want to call from her room, for fear of having Paige walk in on her as she talked things through with Hanna.

"You can't control what your heart feels, Em."

"Then how stupid am I, thinking that the straight girl would like me back?"

"Are you sure that she doesn't? I mean, what kind of 'friend' lets you sleep in her arms all night?"

"Come on, Hanna. I've done that with you!"

"Yeah, but you've known me all your life. You've know Paige for all of five minutes. Not the same."

"I know, Hanna," Emily whined with a sigh, "But..."

"But nothing. Look, Em, you're not going to be able to get over this until you talk it over with her. I mean, you and I can speculate from now till eternity, but you and Paige are the only ones who are going to be able to work it out."

"But what if there's nothing _to_ work out? I'm under a lot of stress here, and everything's falling apart. So, Paige is my one safe place. What if that's all she is? What if it's not love, just comfort? Is that worth risking her relationship with Sean – my relationship with Maya – our relationship with each other?"

"Ooh – your _relationship!_ "

"God – grow up, Hanna! I'm being serious!"

"So am I, Emily. Look – it's obvious that you have feelings for her, and it sure as hell seems that she has feelings for you. I don't know what's going on with her and Sean, but I do know that you and Maya haven't worked for a long time. I'm sorry, but you know that it's true."

Emily sighed. She knew that her friend was right. "I can't promise you," Hanna continued, "that things will work out with Paige. But I _can_ promise that you'll regret it if you don't at least give it a chance."

"That's easy for you to say. If I pour out my guts to her and it turns out that she's not even close to thinking about me that way, I'll lose the one safe place that I have here at Stanford. And I'll still have to live with her for the rest of the year!"

"You have to take a risk, Em," Hanna urged. "And, besides, she sounds pretty chill. I don't think that she'll freak out on you. I mean, think about if it were the other way around. If she were crushing on you and you didn't have feelings for her, you wouldn't freak out, would you? You'd be flattered."

"Yeah, but _she's_ not gay."

"Emily, if she were going to freak out about the gay thing, she would've freaked out long before now. She fucking let you spend the night in her arms – in her bed, for Christ's sake!" Hanna almost yelled, adding, under her breath, "She sounds pretty gay, if you ask me!"

Emily took in a deep breath, ignoring that snide comment and trying to build up her nerve. "So, talk to her?"

"Talk to her, Em. And let me know how it goes."

Emily ended the call, feeling much better. Hanna always had a way of doing that. Deep down, she had known all along that she would have to talk to Paige. Hanna had given her the push that she needed.


	5. The Talk

Emily knew what she had to do. She just didn't know how to go about doing it. Should she invite Paige for coffee, telling her that they needed to talk? That sounded way too formal. Should she bring it up in casual conversation? How would that even work? Should she climb back into Paige's bed? God, how good that sounded. It just seemed that it would be easier to talk to Paige with Paige's arms around her, letting her know that she was safe and accepted.

Paige said that she was always going to be there for her. She just had to trust that. The only thing was, she could feel Paige pulling away. Maybe it was her imagination, but Paige just seemed distant, somehow. Not cold; it felt as if Paige didn't feel safe around her. Paige had made them promise each other that they would talk things over if it ever started to get awkward. Maybe that's the way that she should approach Paige: It's awkward, so we need to talk.

* * *

Paige was trying her best to act normal around Emily, but she knew that Emily could sense that something was up. Things that had always felt natural were starting to feel weird. There were times when Paige would have grabbed Emily's hand, but she was afraid that she wouldn't be able to let go. She didn't dare risk giving Emily the hugs that she had never thought twice about before, for fear that she wouldn't be able to stop herself from kissing Emily and telling her all of the inappropriate thoughts that she found herself having. Emily had opened herself to up to Paige and shared her deepest fears with her. How would Emily ever be able to trust her again if she found out that Paige was taking advantage of her at her most vulnerable point, and creeping on her like some hormone-fueled schoolboy? And Paige really wanted to know what was going on with Maya, but she couldn't ask for fear that Emily would see her for what she was: A vulture, circling for the scraps from Emily's failed relationship.

She had to do something. They couldn't go through the rest of the year this way.

Meanwhile, Paige and Sean had quietly broken up after having slowly drifted apart from each other. Paige was relieved to see on facebook that he had found someone and moved on. She and Sean remained friends. She wondered whether or not they had ever been anything more than friends, if they were being honest.

* * *

One night after dinner, things came to a head. They were studying in their room when Emily broke the silence. "Paige?" Paige looked up. Emily had turned around in her chair and was facing her. "I kind of need to talk to you about something, but I'm not sure how." _Oh, shit,_ Paige thought. _She knows. Do I apologize? Do I let her let me down gently?_ Paige tried to hide the panic that she was feeling as Emily continued. "Maya and I have been going through a lot, lately, and I really just wanted to talk to someone about it, but…"

"Emily, you can talk to me about it. You can talk to me about anything!"

"I know that you _say_ that, Paige. But it's just been weird between us ever since the last time."

"Oh, Em, I'm so sorry about that…"

"No," Emily interrupted. "It's not your fault. You were just trying to be there for me, and I didn't mean to take advantage of the situation. I swear, Paige, I wasn't trying to…"

Emily trailed off. Paige was baffled. _She thinks that she was the one who took advantage of the situation?_ Paige closed her eyes. She had to tell Emily everything. But she couldn't look at her while she did it. After a moment, she began speaking, slowly and deliberately. "Emily. I meant what I said. I want to be there for you. I know that you're going through a lot of stuff, and we're out here away from our family and friends…"

_And I want to protect you_ , Paige wished that she could say. _I want to take you in my arms and make everything better._

Emily scooted her chair closer to Paige's and risked putting a hand on her forearm, to get Paige to open her eyes and continue. Paige was startled at the touch. That was the only reason that she pulled back, but she opened her eyes just in time to see Emily look away sadly as she pulled her arm back. _I can't even touch her anymore._

Paige gave Emily a sincere look as she grabbed the hand that had been extended to her and held it in both of hers. "Look, I know that I've been acting weird, but I promise you that it's not your fault." Emily stared, disbelieving, deep into Paige's eyes, trying her best to figure out how it could possibly not be her fault.

"You don't have to say that, Paige. I mean, I know that you accept me, so I know that it's not a gay thing. Like, if I were a guy and I did that, it would be just as much over the line."

Paige could feel herself starting to break. Before she knew it, she was sobbing uncontrollably, and she didn't know why. Emily led her to Paige's bed and sat there, holding her as she wept and wept. "I'm sorry," Paige finally said.

"Sorry for what?" Emily still had no grasp of what was troubling Paige.

"I'm sorry about your relationship with Maya, and I'm sorry that I haven't been able to be there for you, and I'm sorry that I don't know how to fix things, and I'm sorry that you can't even talk to me about it without it being weird, because I'm falling for you."

Paige gasped as soon as that slipped out. Emily gasped, too. Paige grabbed her phone and her shoes and dashed for the door. "I'm sorry, Emily! I'm just – I'm so sorry." Before Emily could stop her, she was down the hall, heading off to God knows where.

Emily shut the door, went over to her bed, and pulled out her phone. She was in tears by the time Hanna picked up.

"Emily? What happened? Did you talk to Paige?"

"Uh huh," Emily sobbed out weakly.

"Oh, shit. I'm so sorry, Em. Where are you now?"

"I'm sitting on my bed."

"Where's Paige?"

"I don't know. She left."

"Oh, man. Is she coming back? Are you going to have to find a new roommate?"

"I don't know, Hanna!" Emily had raised her voice in frustration, not out of anger. Hanna understood.

"Okay," she said calmly, "Why don't you tell me exactly what happened."

"I don't even know what happened. I told her that we needed to talk, because things were awkward, and I apologized for the boundaries thing." Emily was trying to figure things out as she told Hanna the story. "The next thing I know, she was crying uncontrollably and apologizing for everything. Then she said that she was sorry for falling for me, and she ran out of the room."

"You didn't go after her?"

"I called out to her, but I didn't know what I would say to her. I mean – I still don't know what to say to her."

"Holy shit, Emily!"

"What?"

"You turned her?"

"Jesus, Hanna!"

"No, like, isn't that every gay girl's dream come true, to turn a straight girl?"

"Damn it, Hanna, can you try to be serious for one minute?"

"I'm sorry," Hanna said, but she couldn't help giggling. She settled down and stayed on the phone for the better part of an hour. Most of the conversation consisted of Emily saying, "Hanna" tearily and Hanna saying, "I know." While they were still at it, Emily's phone beeped. She pulled it away from her face to see that it was e-mail from Paige. She reached over to her desk and pulled open her laptop. "Hold on, Hanna, Paige just e-mailed me. 'Subject: I'm sorry. Emily – I'm truly sorry. I want you know that I didn't set out to take advantage of you when you were vulnerable.'" Emily was growing more puzzled the more she read. "'I would never do that. I honestly wanted you to help you figure things out with Maya. I hope that you can trust me again someday and that we can be friends again, on some level. I can find someplace to sleep tonight and for the next couple of days. I hope that you can forgive me. Paige.'"

"Wow."

"Yeah, wow."

"You've got to tell her to come back. You can't let her spend all night thinking what she's thinking!"

"I know, Hanna," Emily said, more distracted than annoyed. "I'm texting her right now."

"What are you texting her?"

"'Paige, Please come home.' Just keep it simple, right? Oh – and a smiley face, so that she's knows that I'm not mad."

"Yeah, that's good. Good touch."

"Okay – and, send!"

"Now send her a shot of your boobs!"

"Hanna!"

"What? You want her to come back, don't you? Shit, send _me_ a picture of your boobs, and I'll be on the next flight!"

* * *

Paige read Emily's text over and over again, trying to tease every nuance of meaning out of it. "Come home" – not "Come back," and not "the room," but "home." And a smiley. That had to be good. _Jeez, the only thing better would be if she'd sent me a picture of her boobs!_

When Emily heard steps outside the door, she stood up and walked toward it tentatively. She was more than a little scared, but when the door opened and she saw Paige, all that she could do was gather her in for a hug. Paige hugged her back, hesitantly, at first. Emily launched into the speech that she had rehearsed with Hanna. "Thanks for coming home, Paige. Listen, I know that we have to talk about everything, but, right now, the best thing for both of us would be to get some rest. We'll talk it over in the morning, okay?"

Paige nodded meekly, not really looking up. Emily lifted Paige's head and gazed into her eyes. "Okay?" she asked again, and Paige confirmed, "Okay." With her hand still supporting Paige's chin, Emily leaned forward and gave her roommate a slow, chaste, peck on the lips. There was nothing behind it other than "I'm glad that you're safe. Thanks for coming home." A friendly kiss, she told herself. Paige told herself the same thing as she laid her head on Emily's shoulder and relished the feeling of being home. **  
**


	6. The Second Talk

Paige knew that she wasn't going to be able to get any sleep that night. She lay in bed running the evening's events over and over in her head. She was grateful for Pru's advice to send Emily e-mail. That way, she was able to convey all of the words that she wanted to say to Emily without having to worry about being interrupted or losing her train of thought. And, quite frankly, she had had absolutely no idea how she was ever going to be able to come back to the room after the way that she'd left.

But it wasn't just "the room." Emily had asked her to come _home_. She knew that she was reading too much into that word. But she couldn't deny that feeling of home that she had come to feel around Emily. And coming home into Emily's welcoming embrace was definitely something that she could get used to. Not to mention the kiss. Paige brushed the back of her index finger over her lips. She knew that it was just a kiss, with no deeper meaning behind it. But that didn't stop her lips from tingling at the memory. She let out a long sigh. Finally, she flung the covers aside in frustration and got out of bed.

"Paige?" Emily sounded almost afraid. Paige understood why.

"I just have to go to the bathroom, Em. I'm not running away again. I promise."

* * *

Neither Paige or Emily slept very well all night. At different points in the night, each of them almost turned on the light and suggested that they might as well just go ahead and have their talk, because they both knew that they weren't going to get any sleep. Like kids on Christmas Eve, they kept waking up over and over, checking the clock only to realize that it was still too early to get up. Each knew that the other was doing it, but each was too anxious to break the cycle.

Paige found her thoughts constantly drifting back to the comfort of waking up with Emily snuggled into her side, back to the exhilaration of pressing a kiss onto Emily's temple, and back to the relief of the kiss that Emily had given her before they went to their separate beds. It all felt so different from what she'd had with Sean. With Sean, it was like playing the game of Life: Spin the wheel and move forward however many spaces, with only one direction to move except at one or two junctures. Everything was prescribed and happened just as it had been laid out in front of them. Being with Emily felt like jumping out of a plane blindfolded, careening blindly toward the future at a thousand miles an hour, trusting only that the Fates would provide a safe landing.

On the other side of the room, Emily was back to thinking how foolish she was being, falling for a straight girl. Until earlier that night, Paige had given no indication whatsoever that she even liked women. Paige was just an open-minded person who, as she told Emily, came to college to experience every side of life. It's no surprise that she would want to experiment sexually. What would it feel like to be in Emily's shoes when the experiment was over? How could she possibly recover from that? Hanna was right about one thing. The dream of turning a straight girl was just that – a dream.

When they had finally stayed in bed for what they thought was a respectable amount of time, they decided that they were going to need to get coffee before they could discuss any of this coherently. Emily wanted to talk at the coffee shop, but Paige was afraid that things could get too emotional for a public discussion. Paige ended up volunteering to go pick up coffee and muffins and bring them back to the room. The trip gave both her and Emily a final chance to overthink how they were going to approach the meeting.

* * *

"So," Paige led off, "How do we do this?"

"I can start," Emily offered. "I'm just really confused, you know? I mean, we didn't have any problems or awkwardness until that night when I came home crying and ended up falling asleep in your arms. And I get why that was over the line, so I wanted to clear the air yesterday and apologize. But then you got… emotional and you started apologizing, but I don't know why, and you said… that thing that you said, and I don't know what it means."

Paige stood up and started pacing, trying to sort things out in her head. "Okay. Okay. I'm confused, too. I don't really know what's going on, Em. With me, I mean. I just felt this... connection with you from the first time that we met. I thought that it was because we were both swimmers, both – I don't know – we have a lot in common. And, then, once the school year started, and I saw how hard things were for you with Maya and all the training and school work, I don't know, I just wanted to be there for you. Like, always. Like, be the person whom you went running to whenever something was wrong. But then, that night when you came home crying and you let me hold you all through the night, I don't know. It was as though something switched on inside of me. As if some part of my brain – or my heart – was activated for the first time. It was harder and harder for me to convince myself that I just wanted to be a good friend to you. I've never felt what I'm feeling before, for anyone."

"The feeling… what you said. That you're falling for me." Emily had repeated the words thousands of times in her head. Still, she found it almost impossible to say them out loud to her roommate.

"I'm sorry, Emily."

"You can stop saying that."

"I don't know what else to say. I took advantage of you. You needed me to be there as a friend, and I took advantage of that."

"Paige, stop. You helped me get through that night. Look, I can't deny that I have feelings for you, too. But I'm afraid. I'm afraid that I'm feeling what I'm feeling for you because you were there when I was hurting. I don't want to jerk you around. And I don't want you to be my rebound, you know? And I'm afraid of just being your experiment – I mean, I know that you wouldn't do that to me intentionally, but maybe your heart is just curious. Or maybe it's confused because of the things that we've been through together. I mean, have you ever been in love with a woman before?"

"That's just it, Emily. I don't think that I've ever been in love with _anyone_ before. I've had bonding experiences with teammates who were there for me in tough times, and I dated Sean for over two years, for Christ's sake, but I haven't felt _anything_ like this. And, Emily, I would never jerk you around, but I just want to let you know: I'd rather have one week of this – whatever it is that I'm feeling right now, even if it turns out that there's nothing between us – than another two years of whatever it was that I had with Sean. I'd rather be truly alive for a day than spend a lifetime just surviving."

"Whoa." Emily was dumbstruck. "Now I'm the one who doesn't know what to say." Emily thought for a second. "Wait, that you _had_ with Sean?"

"Yeah," Paige said with no emotion, "we broke up a couple of weeks ago." Emily reached out a hand toward Paige. "It's okay. It had been coming for a long time. And he's moved on, and I'm really happy for that."

Emily could see that Paige wasn't just saying it. "Still, I wish you'd told me. You let me dump all that Maya crap on you, but you had to handle this all by yourself."

"Trust me, Em. There was nothing to handle. It was really the best thing for both of us."

Emily reached up and gave Paige's forearm a squeeze. "So, where does this all leave us, now?"

"Well, it's still complicated, but at least everything's out in the open, now. You know how I feel, and I know how you feel. We just need to take some time to process things and see where we end up. I need to talk to Pru, and you need to talk to Hanna."

"Yeah. Sure. That makes sense, Paige. But can we, please, do one thing?" Paige looked down at Emily, her expression asking what the one thing was. "Can we, please, just go back to the way that it was before that night, when I could give you a hug or accidentally touch your hand or... whatever without it feeling weird between us?"

Paige answered by pulling Emily off of the bed up to her feet and giving her a long, warm hug. "I've missed this," she said into Emily's ear.

Emily sighed in relief. "So have I," she said, sniffling a little, burying her head in Paige's neck. "So have I."

"Do you think..." Paige started, but thought better of it. Emily looked at her, curious.

"Do I think what?"

"Nothing. I... It was... Never mind."

"Paige. You can ask me anything."

Paige let out a deep sigh. She stared at her feet and asked, her voice barely above a mumble, "Well, I didn't get any sleep last night, and I know that you didn't, either. Do you think that we could just... rest here, for a while? Like, the two of us... together?" She looked up sheepishly and saw the huge smile on Emily's face.

"Now that," Emily said emphatically, "is the greatest idea I've heard all day!"

Paige stepped out of her shoes and coat and got back into bed, in her sweats. Emily hung up the robe that she had thrown on over her pajamas and found her place in Paige's arms. Paige held Emily so tight that she was afraid of hurting her, but she couldn't help it. She was just so content. And Emily didn't seem to mind. Even though things were still unresolved between them, Emily couldn't remember when she had ever felt as safe as she did within the protective wall that Paige had built around her, with the rhythmic lullaby of Paige's heartbeat easing her off to sleep.

In her dream, she was a boat, securely moored to the shore as the waves rolled in and out in time with the beating of Paige's heart. In spite of the strong pull of the waves, she remained steadfastly ashore, her strong anchor ensuring that she would never be cast adrift into the unrelenting sea.

* * *


	7. The Hangover

True to their word, the roommates immediately got back to their pre-awkward days. Everything was back to the way that it was before. Except for the kissing. That was new. When they parted ways in the morning, they kissed. When they met back in the room, they kissed. Paige didn't even remember how it had all started.

The kisses were just chaste pecks, the kind that a married couple would exchange. Only they weren't married. Or dating. Just roommates who happened to kiss. Sometimes, they would take study breaks and kiss. And kiss. And kiss. The kisses were never discussed. For her part, Paige was afraid to think what the kisses meant. More than that, though, she was afraid to think that they didn't mean anything at all.

One Saturday afternoon, as Paige lay on her back reading in bed, Emily came over and lay beside her, scrolling through her social media accounts on her phone. Paige smiled to herself. It felt good just to have Emily with her. After a while, Emily put her phone down next to Paige's on the bedside table and rolled over onto her side, snuggling into Paige. She pulled Paige's arm under her neck, and Paige obligingly rubbed her back. It was much like the night when Emily came home crying and ended up sleeping in Paige's arms, only, this time, Emily's hand on Paige's stomach was underneath Paige's shirt. Emily deposited a kiss onto the side of Paige's neck, and, soon, Paige could feel the rhythm of Emily's deep breathing, her chest swelling and contracting against Paige's side and the warm breaths that she exhaled falling lightly against Paige's neck.

Paige, who had been smiling to herself ever since Emily climbed into the bed with her, let out a nervous chuckle once she realized that Emily was asleep. She let herself feel the contact of Emily's foot on her foot, calf on her calf, thigh on her thigh, hand on her stomach, forearm on her side, head on her shoulder, hair on her face. To be honest, Paige was feeling a lot more warmth than the heat of Emily's body on her body.

Paige breathed in Emily's aroma deeply. She wished that, somehow, she could drink that aroma. She wanted to get falling down drunk on the scent of Emily Fields.

Paige brushed her fingers through her roommate's thick, dark hair, pushing it away from Emily's face. She let her hand linger in Emily's hair, resting lightly against her ear and neck, as she contemplated the exposed skin of Emily's cheek. Emily looked at peace, lying there, and a large part of Paige wanted to think that _she_ was the reason for that. At that moment, something irrational in her felt that Emily was _hers_ , and she leaned in to seal that sentiment with a kiss. She stopped herself just in time. _This is stupid,_ she heard herself mumble, just barely audibly. She and Emily kissed all the time, but she couldn't fool herself with the lie that this near-kiss was as innocent as the others.

Paige eventually placed the book that had been tented against her chest onto the shelf above her bed. She hadn't been able to concentrate since Emily crawled in beside her, anyway. She turned her back to Emily, to put some distance between the two of them. Emily, still asleep, felt her arm slip out from underneath Paige's shirt and scooted closer, pressing her body into Paige's back as her hand found its way back to its spot against the tensed muscles of Paige's stomach. Once she had reclaimed that territory, she smiled against Paige's neck with a contented sigh. Paige echoed her with a sigh as much from nerves as from contentment.

* * *

"Hey!" Paige nudged Emily awake. "If we want to get some dinner, we'd better head to the cafeteria before it closes!"

"What time is it?"

"6:30."

"Mmph," Emily muttered groggily. "I fell asleep." She didn't seem in any hurry to get up. Paige wasn't in any hurry to separate herself from the way that her body was entangled with Emily's. She sat up and gave Emily a kiss. "Come on, sleepyhead! The caf closes in 20 minutes!"

Paige and Emily grabbed a quick bite and, as was their Saturday routine, they took the long walk to the Athletic Center and got some aerobics and yoga in. It wasn't late, but it was dark out, and they were both thoroughly exhausted, so they had both decided to turn in early.

* * *

Paige got back from the bathroom to find Emily in her bed. "What's happening here?" she smiled.

Emily shrugged her shoulders. "Your bed's more comfortable."

"What? We're switching beds now?" Paige was still smiling. "Did I get a vote in this decision?"

Emily rolled her eyes. "Get in here!" she insisted, scooting over a bit. "There's plenty of room for the two of us." There really wasn't, but Paige wasn't about to say anything. She climbed under the covers next to Emily, still finding it impossible to wipe the smile off of her face. It was all that she could do to keep from giggling.

So, they were sharing a bed, now. It made the good-morning and good-night kisses that much easier. But they weren't dating. That subject never came up.

* * *

When the end of midterms rolled around, Paige and Emily were ready to blow off some steam. They were going to hit the fraternity parties with the rest of the swim team. Paige was dressed and ready, in a long-sleeved white shirt with red pinstripes over a pair of dark skinny jeans. Emily couldn't decide. She was going through everything in her closet, from the looks of it, and had even tried on a few things from Paige's side of the closet while she was at it. Paige had to pretend to play on her phone, in order to avoid blatantly ogling as her roommate stepped into and out of outfit after outfit. It didn't help that Emily kept inserting herself into Paige's field of vision, asking her opinion. "Focus, McCullers," she admonished, gripping her roomate's chin to pull her eyes away from the phone, "or we're never going to get out of here!" Emily was stripped down to her bra and panties when she made this demand. Paige wasn't quite sure exactly what Emily was trying to get her to focus on.

Emily eventually settled on some knee-length khakis and a Cardinal red sweater with a white "S" on it. It seemed a bit anti-climactic after all of the time that she had spent trying on outfits. As they were walking out of the door, Emily reached over and unbuttoned the second button down from the collar on Paige's shirt, patting her hand in the open space matter-of-factly. They walked arm in arm up to fraternity row, their anticipation for the night building.

The parties were crowded out onto the lawns. Emily grabbed Paige's hand and led her through the sea of people. Paige felt herself tingle with excitement. Somehow, holding hands with Emily that way seemed much more intimate than any other contact that they'd shared. More than the hugs. More than the kisses. More than sleeping in the same bed. It wasn't just that Emily was holding her hand, but that Emily was leading her – that they were holding hands because they were going somewhere. Together. Not "together" together, of course. They had never discussed that. Whatever.

Paige knew that it was reaching the point where they were going to have to talk about exactly what it is that they were.

* * *

Paige and Emily found themselves perched near a windowsill, trying to carry on a conversation over the incredibly loud music that was blaring through the house. Occasionally, guys would come over and ask one of them to dance, and Paige or Emily would politely smile and say, "Not now." Finally, Emily said, "This is ridiculous!" and grabbed Paige's hand, leading her out to the dance floor.

Paige loved dancing with this slightly drunk Emily. Emily really let loose on the dance floor, and Paige responded in kind. They were young, they were carefree; it was everything college life should be. Paige wanted to live that moment in slow motion, or rewind it and replay it over and over. She had never danced so hard in her life. Emily was dancing just as hard and had worked up a bit of a sweat. Somewhere along the way, she had tossed her sweater aside in favor of the flimsy tank top that lay beneath it.

Paige didn't want the dancing to end. It went on for quite a while, actually, before the DJ spun a slow song. Paige didn't trust herself on a slow song, so she pulled Emily off of the dance floor and out towards the exit.

They walked home, red cups in hand, their other hands clasped together, singing Stanford fight songs at the top of their lungs, swinging their arms in time with the music that they were creating.

All of a sudden, Emily broke her grip on Paige's hand and darted off toward some bushes. Paige froze for a moment, then took off after her, afraid that she was about to start puking. She caught up to Emily as she was trying to undo the zipper on her khakis. "Paige!" she exclaimed, "Dare me to pee standing up!"

Paige was laughing so hard that she could hardly reply. "What?"

"Dare me to pee standing up! Why should guys get to have all the fun?"

"Emily, I know that you're not an expert on the subject, but guys have different equipment than you and I!"

Emily gave Paige a sad look and said, earnestly, "But that's not fair!" She continued, in righteous indignation, "It's Penisism! We live in a Penisocracy! It's the United Penis States of America, with... with... Penisvania and... and... Penischussetts!" All of a sudden, Penis was the funniest word in Emily's vocabulary.

"Okay, okay, cowgirl! Let's get you home."

Emily seemed to like that idea. "Home? You're going to take me home?" She was looking up at Paige with all the innocence and wonder of a three year old. For a moment, Paige got lost in her eyes. Emily was so close that Paige could feel her breath with every exhale. So close that Paige wouldn't have to lean very far in to give her a kiss - a _real_ kiss, not their daily pecks - a kiss that could say everything that Paige was too cowardly to admit to herself or to Emily.

Emily's look changed to one of confusion under Paige's intense gaze. She reached up and touched Paige's lips with two fingers. It was not a gentle or sensual touch. It was more a drunken, questioning touch, as if Emily were unable to fathom why Paige should have two lips. Out of the blue, Emily tossed her head back and yelled at the top of her lungs, "I'm drunk!"

"Yes," Paige agreed calmly, gathering Emily in her arms and leading her back to the sidewalk, "You're drunk. And I'm taking you back home."

* * *

Back in the room, Emily divested herself of her shoes and khakis and sprawled out on top of Paige's bed (well, _their_ bed, essentially) wearing just her tank top and panties. Paige leaned over and kissed her roommate good night. Emily moaned drunkenly into the kiss and rolled over onto her stomach when it was over. Paige went over to Emily's bed, which was basically only used for studying and storage anymore, unceremoniously pushed Emily's pile of rejected outfits from earlier onto the floor, and got under the covers. With everything that she had been feeling that night, with the two of them as drunk as they were, and with Emily in the state of undress that she was, Paige thought better of sleeping in the same bed as her.

God knows when on Saturday morning – or Saturday afternoon, Paige wasn't sure – she woke to feel Emily climbing into bed next to her, dressed the way she was when she collapsed on the bed the night before. As she pressed up against Paige's back, Paige couldn't help notice that, at some point, Emily had rid herself of her bra. "Hey – why'd you sleep over here?" Emily asked in a soft, sleepy, hungover voice.

Paige rolled over to face Emily, shrugging her shoulders. They needed to talk about things, but not right then. Not when they were both hungover. Paige gave Emily a kiss instead of a reply.

"Ew, Paige! Your breath tastes like shit," Emily complained in a gravelly, hoarse, early morning, slightly drunk voice before she kissed Paige back, long and hard, pulling her further into the kiss by the back of her head. Paige had to use all of the self-control that she could muster to keep from deepening the kiss. Finally, she pushed back from Emily's lips and put words to the thoughts that had been tormenting her for days: "Okay, I really think that we would be better off having this conversation when we're both thinking more clearly, but I really need to know right now: Are we dating? Because, this, Emily? This sure feels a hell of a lot like dating!"

Emily shoved Paige in the shoulder, knocking her onto her back, and laughed. "Jesus, McCullers! Took you long enough to figure _that_ out! I was beginning to think that I was going to have to adopt a cat or rent a U-Haul or something!"


	8. Jolly Old St. Nick

Emily took the steps up to her room two at a time. She was nervous about the text that she had received sin the middle of Econ from Paige: "Need 2 talk." That was it. Emily couldn't really follow up without risking the ire of her professor, and she was a little annoyed that Paige would text her just that, with no clue as to what was up, leaving her fearing the worst and powerless to do anything about it for the remainder of the class period. She tried to be calm as she opened the door. Paige looked like the kid who had to confess that she'd broken her mom's priceless vase.

Emily greeted her with a kiss and got straight down to business. "So, what's up" she asked, trying not to panic and put Paige even more on edge.

"Well, there's good news and bad news."

"What's the bad news?" Emily asked, the worry coming through in her tone and in the furrowing of her brow.

"My father's coming out to visit."

"Why is that bad? Wait, first, what's the good news?"

Paige dipped her head and looked up at Emily. "I love you?" she offered with a meek smile.

"Paige, why is it bad news that your dad's coming? Does he have a problem with the fact that you're dating a woman?" Paige didn't look up at her. "Oh, Paige – he doesn't _know_ that we're dating?"

"It's not as if I'm hiding it from him, Emily. I just – we just don't talk about stuff the way that you and your parents do."

"Does he know about Sean?"

"He knows that we broke up."

"But he doesn't know that you're dating me?"

"I'm not ashamed of you, Emily – or of my sexuality. My Dad and I... we don't talk about things. All we talk about is my grades and my times. You know that we have a strained relationship!"

"Well, when were you planning to tell him about us?"

"I don't know – I just figured that it would come up _sometime_."

"Well, it's definitely going to come up when he visits you! Unless – oh, no, Paige, you're not asking…"

"No, Emily! I would never ask that."

"So you're telling me that he's going to come here with no idea that you're dating – no idea that you're dating anybody, much less dating a woman - And he's going to find out when he sees us acting like a couple. That's your plan."

"That's just the way that my family works, Em. Trust me, this is the best way for him to find out."

"Oh, I don't believe this!"

"I told you that my family's dysfunctional. You should just be happy that _I_ turned out so good."

"So, am I going to go with you to pick him up at the airport, or are you just going to spring me on him over dinner?"

"He knows who you are, Em. He used to scout you when we were competing in high school. And he knows that we're roommates."

"And you don't think that he's going to find the bit about us being more than roommates the least bit upsetting?"

"Seriously, Em, this is the best way for him to find out. He'll just pretend that he knew it all along, he'll go home and process it, and, the next thing you know, he'll be inviting you over for Thanksgiving."

* * *

When Emily got the text that Paige had met her father in the arrivals area, she pulled up in the car that they had borrowed from their teammate, Vicki. Nick McCullers had no bags to claim. He traveled light. His motto was BINGO: **B** ust **IN** , **G** et **O** ut.

Emily got out of the car and gave Nick McCullers a firm handshake, Paige having warned her not to try a hug. _Who wears a suit and tie on a plane?_ Emily wondered. _What is he, an air marshal?_

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Emily," Nick said as they shook hands. "Of course, your reputation precedes you."

Paige had introduced Emily as her roommate, much to Emily's disappointment.

Emily moved to the backseat for the ride to the hotel so that Paige and her dad could sit together in the front seats. He got right into the discussion of her training regimen, her diet, her study habits, and her times. "Well, I hope that Emily, here, is a good influence on you," he said, turning his head toward Emily in the backseat. It was his way of offering Emily his admiration of her swimming. _Oh, Nick_ , Emily thought, _you have no idea what an influence I've been on your daughter._

Paige and Emily waited in the lobby while Nick checked in and freshened up in his hotel room before they set off for dinner. When he stepped off the elevator, he registered the way that Emily and his daughter were holding hands as they sat chatting in adjacent, oversized hotel-lobby chairs. He didn't give any visible reaction, but he updated his mental file to reflect the fact that his daughter was dating again.

All through dinner, Nick engaged in small talk as though he were talking to his daughter and her roommate. Paige wasn't backing away from any of the things that she would ordinarily do in public with the woman whom she was dating – resting her hand on Emily's thigh, stroking Emily's back as she told her dad a story that involved her, putting her arm around her shoulder as they huddled over the menu trying to decide what dessert they were going to share. Paige wasn't going out of her way to flaunt their relationship in front of her dad, nor was she reining in her affectionate behavior. Emily came to understand what Paige had told her earlier: That was just the way that Paige and her father communicated. By the end of dessert, Emily felt bold enough to give Paige a kiss on the cheek after Paige fed her the last bit of mousse. Nick McCullers didn't react at all; no "Ah, what a cute couple," no "how long has this been going on?" no frown of disapproval or embarrassment.

The only acknowledgment that Nick gave of the fact that Emily and his daughter were together came when they dropped him off at the hotel. Nick and Paige made arrangements to meet for breakfast before she took him to see their coach and visit the swim team's facilities. "And you'll be joining us for breakfast, of course, Emily?" he asked, smiling. Emily wasn't sure that she'd seen him smile in the brief time that she'd known him. On the ride back to the dorm, Paige assured Emily that the smile was a monumental gesture of approval on his part. "Oh, great," Emily deadpanned. "He approves of me."

"Trust me. It was _months_ before Sean ever got a smile from him."

"He must think that I'm good for your swimming career, or something," Emily joked. Paige looked away timidly. "Oh, my God, Paige! It's true? _That's_ why your dad approves of me?"

"Em! Three days ago, you were afraid that he was going to object to my dating a woman! Now, you're upset that he thinks that you're good for me?"

Emily laughed. "He thinks that I'm good for _your swimming_ , Paige!" she corrected. "Never in my life would I have expected _that_ to be the reason that my girlfriend's dad likes me. _Likes_ me? I mean, _approves_ of me!"

"'Likes' you, trust me: He likes you. And, wait, back up: 'Girlfriend?' Is that what we are, now?"

"Yeah." Emily gave Paige a quizzical look. "What? You didn't know?"

"Just do me a favor, will you? Just give me some advance notice before we become wives, okay? Like, maybe a week or so would be nice." Paige was smiling broadly at Emily before she turned her attention back to the road.

* * *

As they were brushing their teeth, Emily asked, "What was up with the coat and tie, Paige? Who gets all dressed up for a plane trip?"

"Yeah, my Dad's definitely old school," Paige replied, pausing to spit. "Get used to that suit. You'll be seeing more of before he flies back home."

They were both feeling too giddy to sleep: Emily, because her girlfriend's dad liked her, whatever his motivation for that, and Paige because she had just discovered that she was Emily's girlfriend. Paige knew, though, that they were going to have to get some sleep so that they would be at their best bright and early for their day with her father, so she buckled down and insisted that they close their eyes and stop talking. She ended up rubbing Emily's back to help speed her off to sleep.

* * *

Paige's dad was waiting for them in front of the hotel when they pulled up, glancing down at his watch to verify that it was 7:15 on the dot. Emily got out and moved to the back seat.

The morning was intense. Nick McCullers definitely had presence. Emily felt that all of her breakfast choices were under his intense scrutiny. She didn't want her approval rating to go down because of too many breakfast carbs - or not enough. Of course, Nick McCullers would never voice his approval or disapproval out loud. That much Emily had learned.

After reconnecting with Coach Meehan, whom he had gotten to know rather well when Paige was being recruited, Nick sat in on their practice. Afterwards, he went through the athletic department's training and physical therapy facilities. Paige and Emily got some moments to themselves when he went for a tour of the campus and then took lunch with the athletic director. They all met up for dinner before the roommates - girlfriends - whisked him back to the airport to catch the red-eye. Emily offered to park the car so that Paige could see her father through to security, but Paige declined. "He'd rather just have the time to himself."

"You guys have a different kind of relationship, don't you?"

"You can imagine what it was like growing up with him – just the two of us in the house."

"I'm guessing a lot of silence."

"Exactly. As long as my grades were fine and my times were fine, there was nothing to discuss. He retreated to his office, and I retreated to my room."

"Oh, Paige! You didn't even get hugs?"

Paige gave a smile. "Not a lot of the touchy-feely stuff with Nick McCullers." Emily pouted. Paige acknowledged Emily's facial expression, "I know, right?"

"Is that why…" Emily wished that she could erase those words as soon as they were out of her mouth. Paige had heard them, though, and she knew by the way that Emily had aborted the question what it was that she had started to ask.

"Why my Mom left?"

"I'm sorry, Paige. I know that you don't want to talk about it. We don't have to."

"I don't _know_ why my Mom left. She never told me. Maybe _they_ discussed it, but no one ever discussed it with me." Emily reached over into the passenger seat and put her hand on top of Paige's, in her lap. After a few moments, Paige continued. "She didn't just leave him. She left me, too." Emily was about to cry.

"You know that it's not your fault that they split up, Paige."

"Well, it sure feels like it!" Paige was silent for a while as Emily rubbed her thumb across the back of her hand. After she had composed herself somewhat, she added, "As hard as it was for my Dad, he _stayed_. You can say whatever you want to about Nick McCullers, but _he_ stayed." Emily moved her hand up to Paige's cheek. Paige moved closer to her girlfriend, riding with her head on Emily's shoulder for the rest of the trip home.


	9. The Changes Have Begun

Paige was nervously waiting for Pru to pick up her phone. She was equally excited about and dreading talking to her best friend. She knew that she was going to get an earful of "I told you so" and " She turned you!" remarks. Also, she knew that Pru would chastise her for not having kept her up to date on all the changes that were going on in her relationship with her roommate. Well, "roommate" wouldn't work anymore. Emily had acknowledged that they were dating. What's the word for that? Girlfriend? Too soon? For all she knew, given their track record, Emily might well be her girlfriend but she just hadn't found that out yet.

* * *

"What the hell, Paige? You were kissing this girl every day and sleeping in the same bed, and you never said a word to me about it?" Paige had to move the phone away from her face to preserve her eardrums. "And you didn't know that you guys were anything more than roommates?"

"Okay, I'm sorry that I didn't tell you, but I knew that you would make a big deal out of it, and I honestly didn't think that there was anything to make a big deal about."

"Paige, I can't do this over the phone. Skype me!"

Paige obligingly went to her laptop and Skyped Pru, realizing immediately what a big mistake that was. No sooner had Pru's face appeared on the screen than she clicked on something and a rainbow flag floated down from the top of the screen, followed by the words "Sapphic Love" in some 1970s porno font.

"Yeah. Good," Paige deadpanned as it all unfolded. "So glad that we've decided to stay mature about this!"

Pru wasn't finished yet. She clicked again, and "Turn Down For What?" started blaring in the background as she danced in her seat. Paige just smiled and rode it out. "Have you been planning this for a long time?" When Pru had finally gotten it all out of her system, they started talking again.

"You know I'm really happy for you, right, Paige?"

"I'm really happy, too, Pru. I don't know that I've ever actually been in love before. It's such an incredible feeling."

Just then, Emily came back into the room. When she saw that Paige and Pru were Skyping, she tiptoed over to her desk and dropped off her backpack, gesturing towards the door to let Paige know that she was going to give them some privacy. Pru picked up on the gesture. "No, stay! Paige, tell her to stay!"

Paige looked over at Emily with an uncertain smile. "Stay, apparently?"

Emily went over and sat down at her desk, pretending that she was going to be able to work while, she was sure, Paige and Pru chatted about their relationship.

"Where'd she go, Paige? I want to talk to her!" Paige turned toward Emily to motion her over, but Emily had heard Pru and was already getting up. She leaned over Paige's desk with a hand on Paige's shoulder and waved meekly at Paige's laptop. Pru clicked something, and exploding hearts cascaded down the screen. Emily's hair was hanging down over her face from the way that she was leaning, so Paige got up and pulled a chair over for Emily to sit in. Emily sat down and smiled nervously. "Aw! You guys are just so cute together!" Pru clicked her mouse again, and the sound and image of a camera's shutter closing filled the screen. Pru shared the screenshot with them. "That can be your Christmas card!"

Paige gave Emily's arm a squeeze to let her know that her friend wasn't crazy, just obsessed. Pru pressed on. "So, Emily," she practically sang, "You just rocked Paigey's world, didn't you?" Emily smiled over at Paige and mouthed the word, "Paigey?" Pru kept going. "I can see how happy you make her. I hope that she makes you happy, too!"

"Yes," Emily confirmed. "Very happy. Incredibly happy," she added, turning to look at Paige and give her a kiss.

"Wait! Do that again! I didn't get a screenshot!"

* * *

Unlike Paige, who had kept the progression of her relationship a secret from her best friend, Emily had been in constant contact with Hanna. At first, Hanna was skeptical about "Operation Turn the Paige," as she had insisted on calling it. As much as she teased that Emily was the straight-girl whisperer, Hanna worried that Emily would end up getting hurt, falling for someone who was tolerant at worst and confused at best. But the more that Hanna heard about Paige and Emily, the more convinced she became that Emily had to go for it. She could tell that Emily was falling for Paige, and Paige gave every appearance of already having fallen for Emily. "I'd rather have to come out there and console you because it didn't work out than have to console you ten years from now when it's just you and your 17 cats and you're looking back on these days wishing that you had taken your shot," she reasoned. Hanna couldn't believe how oblivious Paige was being, once Emily started dropping those not-so-subtle hints. Hanna kept suggesting far more blatant things that Emily could do to get her message across. When Emily was finally able to report that the two of them were together, Hanna, like Pru, was almost as excited as Paige and Emily themselves were.

* * *

Paige felt overwhelmed by her new relationship. Everything had happened so fast. What does it mean to date someone with whom you've already been sharing kisses - not to mention a bed? She needed to know the limits and boundaries. Emily agreed that the pace at which this first stage of their relationship was going was too fast. They would need to cool things down if there was any long-term hope for them. Sadly, that meant that Emily moved back to her own bed. Those sleeping arrangements lasted for almost half of one night before a defeated Emily sadly trudged over to Paige's bed and tried to sneak in without waking her. Paige, who had also discovered that it had somehow become impossible to sleep alone, welcomed her with open arms. They agreed that they were comfortable at the place that their relationship had achieved, and that they would just cool their jets where they were for a while.

They also agreed that they were pathetic.

The only change in their relationship was that it became more public. They didn't make a formal announcement. They didn't announce it at all, at least not in words. They let their actions do the announcing. The kisses that they shared when they greeted and left each other were no longer confined to their room. They were as likely as not to be holding hands when they walked together. It took a while for people to catch on to the fact that they were dating; they had been joined at the hip long before they started to see each other romantically, and they had always been very touchy. It was almost like watching a child grow: If you see him every day, you don't notice that he's getting bigger till, suddenly, you notice that he's almost looking you in the eye.

* * *

One of the surprising benefits of Emily's new relationship was that her swim times got much better. She hadn't really considered the impact that the stress and sadness of her relationship with Maya was having on her sport. She was glad to be able to feel herself again, and that feeling spilled over into her performance in the water. In turn, the fact that her swimming was back on track resulted in less of the stress that she had been feeling over whether or not she really deserved to be swimming for the Cardinal, and that made it easier for her to concentrate on her studies.

The new relationship had benefits for Paige, as well. She had worried that having a boyfriend (girlfriend, as it turned out) on campus would take away from her study and practice time, especially since she had so little time in the first place. But she had already been spending all of her time with Emily, anyway. Now that they were official, she found that she wasn't spending that extra time worrying about what their relationship was, and whether or not there was any meaning behind every touch or kiss.

* * *

One lazy morning, as they lay in bed, Paige turned towards Emily who was reading from her tablet. "So. You're going to have to help me understand how this lesbian stuff works."

Emily rolled her eyes and smiled. She put her tablet down and turned over onto her side to face Paige. "Okay… What do you need to know?"

"Well, like, what do I give you?" Emily shot her a confused look. "I mean, if we were just friends, I could give you a BFF chain or something. I don't know." Paige was being adorably nervous and vague, but Emily honestly didn't know what she was getting at.

"You don't have to get me anything? You can still get me a BFF chain? Wait," Emily's eyes widened, "are you asking because you want us to be exclusive?"

The way that Emily asked made Paige feel incredibly stupid. She dipped her head. "Well, no, I don't… I mean… I just… Never mind. I mean, _I_ don't want to date anybody else, but that doesn't mean that we have to be…" Paige trailed off, sitting up nervously and dropping her gaze to her fingernails.

Emily sat up, matching Paige's position. She pulled Paige's head up and gave her a kiss. "Oh, Honey! That's not what I meant! I don't want to date anyone else, either!" She wrapped her arms around Paige and held her tight.

"I'm sorry," Paige whispered.

Emily kissed her again. "You use that word too often."

Paige dipped her head again and smiled. She didn't look up when she continued her inquiry. "But, so, how do people know that you're with me?"

"'People?'"

"Like, if we're at a party or something, and someone wants to hit on you."

"Do you want to get tattoos?" Paige glared at her. "Sorry, Paige." Emily backtracked, seeing that Paige was genuinely concerned about this. "Well, what did you and Sean do to let people know that you were together?"

Paige thought it over for a second before a smile of realization stretched across her face. "Okay. I get it!"

Emily kissed her lightly. "Feel better now?"

"Actually," Paige said with a cocky grin on her face, "my only takeaway from this conversation is that you don't want to date anybody but me!" With that, Paige pumped her fist in the air and swung Emily back and forth in an exaggerated victory hug.


	10. Heart of Thanksgiving

"Guess what!" Emily was bubbling over. Hanna's boyfriend, Caleb, had found an airline ticket hack, making it possible for her to fly back to Philadelphia for Thanksgiving for next to nothing.

"Wow! That's great, Em! I'm sure that you'll have a great time."

"You should come with me!"

Paige despised air travel. She hated having to get up early to get to the airport 2 hours in advance, having to wait in endless lines, being run through the wringer of airport security, waiting forever to board the plane, sitting in a cramped cabin for hours, and then staring at the carousels waiting for luggage to come around.

"Well, as much as I love the whole torture experience that air travel has to offer sadly, I have other plans. You know that I'm spending Thanksgiving with my cousins in the Bay Area! They invited you, too."

"Oh, come on, Paige! You can get out of that! You'll have more fun with me! You'll get to meet my friends…"

"I already met one of your friends – no thanks!"

"Spencer? Well, Spencer had reservations about you, too, but she was wrong. I'm sure that, when you get to know her, you'll see that you're wrong about her, too."

"What did she tell you about me? Other than the barracuda thing?"

Emily laughed. "Oh, nothing!" Paige glared at her. "They named a penalty after you? Oh, and I'm supposed to sleep with one eye open around you, apparently."

"Yeah," Paige said sarcastically. "Can't wait to meet Spencer. Will I get to see Maya again, too?"

Emily gave her girlfriend a smack. Then she gave her puppy-dog eyes. "Fine, whatever," Paige conceded. "I'll call my cousins and tell them that we're blowing them off for Thanksgiving in Rosewood."

* * *

Paige was in a foul mood for the entire morning of the trip. Emily was trying to be contagiously happy, but it wasn't working. Paige just kept shifting from one leg to the other as they waited for their turn at the counter, muttering about how ill-advised it was to fly on the busiest travel day of the year.

Things only got worse at Security. Emily breezed right through, but Paige kept setting off the metal detector, getting more and more frustrated each time. The TSA officer asked whether she had anything in her pockets, any jewelry, any studs… "Oh, for fuck's sake!"

From the other side of the security area, Emily, unable to hear the conversation, watched in confusion as Paige leaned in and whispered something into the officer's ear. Without flinching, the officer took Paige aside to be wanded. Paige imagined that, with the volume of people who go through security each day, very few things surprise TSA officers after a while. After passing silently over Paige's lower body and back, the wand came squealing to life as the officer ran it over Paige's left breast. Emily's eyes got three times wider as she realized what was going on. Everyone else in the security area picked up on it too, from the looks of it. Paige raised her hands in sarcastic acknowledgment to the crowd and trudged over to Emily, who had retrieved their carry-ons from the x-ray machine's conveyor belt. "How come I never knew that you had a piercing?" Emily asked, excited.

"I guess 'cause you haven't made it to second base."

* * *

The wait in the terminal was interminable. " _Of course_ the flight's delayed!" Paige was getting more and more grumpy. Emily was getting more and more frisky. Paige had noticed that about Emily when she was tired, especially in the mornings, but this time, her friskiness was off the charts. Paige finally picked up on what was going on. "Oh, this is about the thing in security, isn't it?" Paige asked, slightly annoyed.

"I just want to see what it feels like, Paige. I can't believe that you never told me about it."

"Hey, buy a girl a drink, first!" Paige said, swatting Emily's hands away.

"Paige! I'm your girlfriend! We sleep in the same bed!" Emily realized that she had said that a bit too loud, given where they were having this discussion. Paige cringed a little. "I, of all people, should be allowed to see it," she concluded in a slightly quieter voice.

"Don't worry, Em. I'm sure that you'll get to see it, fondle it, do whatever you want to do with it soon enough." Emily's eyes lit up. "Just not here." She deflated again. Then it occurred to her to ask.

"Has _Sean_ seen it?"

"You'll have to ask him! I never kiss and tell!"

"What does it feel like?"

"I don't even notice it anymore. I forget that it's there. Hence today's incident at Security."

"What does it feel like when you're... you know, intimate?"

"I wouldn't know."

"So, Sean hasn't..."

"Nope. Not till marriage! That's how Sean rolls."

"Oh... so you're..." Emily declined to state the obvious, instead opting to go with her second question. "So, how does Sean feel about us?"

"He appears surprisingly okay with it."

"Really?"

"Really. I guess he's okay with lesbian relationships, as long as he's not involved in them."

* * *

Once they boarded the plane, Paige was the relaxed one, and Emily was the one on edge. She read the safety information pamphlet twice, located all of the exits, and listened intently to the pre-flight safety briefing. As the plane started taxiing and picking up speed, Emily grabbed Paige by the forearm, digging her nails deep into the flesh as the color drained from her face. She maintained that grip until the captain's reassuring voice came over the intercom telling them that they could lean their seats back. Paige reached over and stroked Emily's cheek. "Are you okay?" Emily smiled weakly and lay her head on Paige's shoulder. They had two more take-offs and three more landings to get through before she would be okay.

The route that Caleb had marked out for them took them through Phoenix and Atlanta. After the delays getting out of San Jose, they just barely made their connection at Phoenix. They had plenty of time to kill in Atlanta, though. Nothing was moving. All flights out were delayed by weather in Chicago. At least, that was the excuse that the not-so-helpful counter agents were giving.

Paige was about ready to blow her stack. Emily was resigned to the situation. "Well, we're here. There's nothing at all that we can do about it. We might as well try to enjoy ourselves." Paige didn't even look up. She hadn't said a word in over a half an hour, by Emily's estimation. Emily kept talking, trying to cheer Paige up. Paige just needed some quiet. "I'm going to take a walk," Paige announced. Emily smiled up at her. "Okay. I'll stay with the stuff."

Paige felt horrible. She knew that she was being awful to Emily. And Emily wasn't returning her anger. She was just cheerfully rolling with it. Paige knew that Emily deserved someone better. She wished that she could just flip a switch and be that person. She stepped out of the bustling crowd of people and pulled out her phone. "I love you," she texted. "I hate traveling, but I love you."

* * *

Paige was playing games on her phone, watching the battery drain. Emily was sleeping on her shoulder, both of her hands holding onto Paige's bicep. Paige was a little nervous about how this would go over down South, but people didn't seem to think anything of it. Paige figured that they just thought that she and Emily were good friends. Or, maybe people's attitudes actually were changing. This was all pretty new to her, having to worry about people's reactions to her relationship.

Emily barely woke up when boarding finally began and Paige shuffled her onto the plane. It was actually easier to travel with Emily asleep and not panicking over the take-off.

* * *

When the captain made the announcement about putting seat backs and tray tables into their upright and locked position for the approach to Philadelphia, Emily began briefing her grumpy girlfriend on the friends that she was about to meet. She warned her that Hanna was naturally bubbly, something which, she knew, Paige was in no mood to deal with after a day in airports and airplanes. "Also," she continued. Paige rolled her eyes, knowing that Emily had saved the worst for last. "Spencer is going to be there." Paige rolled her eyes and looked out of the window. "It's just easier for one person to wait with the car while the other person goes in to meet the passengers. Don't be mean, okay?" Emily pleaded. Paige forced a smile. She would try to be on her best behavior for her first impression.

Hanna was bubbly, as advertised. She grabbed Paige into a tight hug. Too tight. She was using her right arm on Paige's left shoulder blade to pull her closer into her body. The hug felt a little aggressive to Paige, but she put it down to her imagination. She never did feel comfortable with hugs. Emily picked up on the helpless look in her eyes and tapped Hanna on her shoulder to get her to give Paige some space. "So," Hanna began, "How was your flight?" Paige noticed the way that Hanna's gaze kept dropping to chest-level, and it was making her a little uncomfortable. Then, she realized that Hanna's gaze wasn't falling just to her chest; it was focusing specifically on her left breast. "Oh, my God, Em! You told her? Already?" Emily bit her lip and looked away, ducking her head. "Seriously?"

"What? I got excited! I couldn't just keep something like that to myself!"

"She texted me," Hanna confirmed excitedly, now staring all the more blatantly at Paige's breast, "while you guys were waiting in the airport in California!" She added, "I've been waiting all day to see it," whining like a child who had been denied the candy that she had been promised for behaving. As if Paige owed her a view because of how long she'd been waiting to see it. Paige couldn't believe that Hanna was actually reaching over to cop a feel. She swatted Hanna's hand away as Emily yelled out, "Hanna! Remember what we discussed! Boundaries!"

* * *

The last thing that Paige was in the mood for was meeting Spencer Hastings. Spencer pulled the car around, popped the trunk, and got out to help with the bags. She shook Paige's hand – something that Paige could respect from a stranger, especially after her ordeal with Hanna. Paige subconsciously hunched her shoulders over, as if that would make her breasts disappear, but Spencer's eyes never traveled there. Either she was more subtle or nonchalant than Hanna – or Emily hadn't mentioned anything to her.

Paige and Emily sat in the back seat. Hanna spent the drive from Philadelphia to Rosewood turned around in the front passenger seat, eager to get caught up on all the details of Paige and Emily's relationship. Emily could see Paige's energy draining. She had learned how much her girlfriend hated social chatter with people whom she didn't know, especially when she was the center of the conversation. She gave Hanna a pleading look, and Hanna deftly switched to catching Emily up on all the Rosewood gossip. Paige was relieved. Emily pulled her over so that she could rest her head on Emily's shoulder. She kissed the top of her head. "Go to sleep, Babe. We'll be in Rosewood soon."

Spencer tilted her head towards the back and asked, "Did you guys eat?" Emily told her that they had gulped something down in the massive airport during their long wait in Atlanta. "Do you want some coffee? I can pull over up ahead!"

"Thanks, Spence, but I think we should just get to my house. We've both had a long day." Spencer nodded and pressed down a little harder on the accelerator.

* * *

"Paige? We're here!"

Paige was cranky. And groggy. And Emily was a little too cheery for her to handle right now. This wasn't the way that she'd hoped to meet Emily's parents. Emily had assured her that they were over Maya, but that seemed unlikely, given the short amount of time that they'd had to get used to the idea. It just seemed too soon to be meeting the parents. She wasn't sure why she had allowed Emily to talk her into this.

And she couldn't help wondering whether or not the subject of her piercing had come up with Emily's parents, too.

Paige got out of the car to see what looked like a shorter version of Emily and a taller man, with military bearing. Other than the fact that Pam Fields was shorter than Paige had expected, they looked pretty much like the picture that Emily had shown her on her phone. Wayne Fields came over to help with the bags, ducking his head inside Spencer's car to greet her. Hanna was still in Rosewood, attending Hollis, but he hadn't seen Spencer since she left for UPenn.

Pam Fields was all smiles and restrained energy. She looked like a dog that had been trained not to devour the steak that was in front of her. Paige guessed that Emily had told her mom not to overwhelm her girlfriend with affection, so Paige made the first move, greeting Pam with a huge smile and a big hug. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Fields!"

"Pam!" she insisted, "Call me Pam!" Emily's eyes almost popped out of her head. This was the exact opposite of what Maya had experienced. Her mother was adamant that she was Mrs. Fields to Maya. Maya ended up not calling her anything at all, when she could avoid it. Pam grabbed Paige by the chin and said, "I'm so glad you came out to spend Thanksgiving with us!" Emily gently touched her mother's arm, and she let Paige go, dipping her head apologetically and rubbing her hands, as if to assure that they didn't invade Paige's space again.

"Thank you so much for having me. I'm really glad to be here, Mrs. – Pam."

Emily's dad had returned from taking the luggage up. He reached out his hand to Paige, who had extended her arms to hug him. "Oh, okay," he corrected and hugged her warmly. "Pam, let them get inside. It's too cold to keep them out here yakking."

They stepped inside, and Pam asked whether she could whip them up something quick to eat. Emily told her that they were both really tired, and asked whether they could all catch up over breakfast in the morning. "Of course, Emmy. You guys have had a long day. You get some rest. Sleep as late as you want tomorrow. We won't start on dinner till the afternoon."

Emily took Paige upstairs and showed her the guest room, where Wayne had put Paige's bags. Paige hadn't thought of that. She wasn't surprised that she wouldn't be sleeping in Emily's room, but she hadn't thought about the fact that she would have to sleep alone. Even though she'd spent most of her 18 years sleeping alone, she and Emily had quickly gotten used to snuggling together at bedtime. Neither one of them did well on their own anymore.

Before they got settled in for the night, Emily showed Paige her bedroom. Paige took one look at the window seat and got as excited as a kid in a candy store. "Wow!" she exclaimed, running over to it, "I've always wanted a room with a window seat!" Emily smiled at Paige's excitement. The window seat was always _her_ place; her fortress of solitude. Her parents knew, when they saw her sitting there, that she needed to be alone. She hadn't opened up the space to either of her previous relationships. In all of their time together, Ben never made it as far as the bedroom. The focal point for her and Maya was the bed – doing homework, hanging out, or making out. To Emily's surprise, though, seeing Paige in the window seat didn't seem like a violation of her closely guarded space. It seemed right, somehow. Well, there was one thing missing. She went over and sat next to her. _This is what this old window seat has been missing all these years_ , she suddenly realized. Before either of them knew what was happening, they were kissing, slowly and intimately. They were releasing all of the tension that had built up during the day, but, also, they were connecting in a deeper way than they had before. It was as though this was where life had been leading them all along. This was their place.

Emily opened her eyes in shock, her lips still locked with Paige's, as she realized where Paige was directing her right hand. Paige was taking it up to her left breast. She couldn't help but smile into the kiss in anticipation. She could feel something there, but it wasn't what she expected. She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and began groping, awkwardly, trying to make sense of what she was feeling. "It's a heart," Paige said, backing away from the kiss, "with an arrow going through it." Emily still couldn't quite picture it, so Paige pulled away, reaching down to pull off her top.

"Girls! There are some clean towels in the bathroom! And, Emily, be sure to show Paige how the shower works!" Emily let out a loud groan in frustration. Pam's voice was their cue. They would have to conclude this show-and-tell session some other time. Emily kissed Paige sadly, and they hugged for as long as they dared. After Wayne Fields cleared his throat for the second time, they regrettably went their separate ways, to try their best to get to sleep alone.

* * *


	11. Piercings, Pals, and Pies

Paige lay awake in the guest room, staring at the ceiling with the faint noises from the TV in Emily's parents' bedroom leaking through the wall. She was trying to will herself to sleep: _I can do this! I can do this!_ She was ecstatic when she heard the door being eased open and saw Emily tiptoe in. She almost let out a cheer at the sight, but Emily had a finger on her lips in a shushing gesture.

"Yay," Paige whispered, "I knew that you'd come and cuddle with me!"

"Cuddle with you my ass!" Emily shot back. "Show me your boob!"

Paige laughed. She should've known. She obediently pulled off the Penguins jersey that she was wearing on top of a pair of yoga pants. Emily's mouth and eyes widened in anticipation. The look on her face eased Paige's nerves. This may have been about the piercing, but, still, Paige was about bare herself to her girlfriend for the first time, and she couldn't help fearing rejection. She had, as it turned out, nothing to worry about.

At first, Emily was distracted by the sheer beauty that was newly unveiled before her. When she caught sight of the heart that was bisecting her girlfriend's nipple, her original purpose was renewed. She stared at the tiny platinum object with the intensity and focus of a forensic scientist. Her hands began orbiting the region, hesitant to make first contact. Paige, seeing the conflict in Emily's eyes, let out a long sigh and resignedly nodded her head. Emily took the cue and went in for the kill. She was absolutely obsessed: lifting it, sliding it, testing its weight. Paige knew how the mama dogs in those viral videos feel, lying passively as their pups irreverently help themselves to the maternal milk stations.

"When did you get it?" Emily asked, her attention and her fingers having subconsciously shifted from the piercing to the breast itself. Paige explained that she had made a bet with her swim team: If they rallied and beat their crosstown rivals, she would get a tattoo. The last thing that Paige wanted was a tattoo, but, as captain of the team, she was looking for a way to motivate her team. They hadn't beaten their rivals in 16 years and were heavy underdogs going into the meet, so it looked to be a safe bet. It turned out to be a powerful motivator. After her team won, they paraded her to a seedy tattoo parlor in a questionable part of town, where visions of hepatitis danced in her head. She noticed the heart in a display case in the front of the store that housed the usual assortment of studs, hoops, and bars. The heart and arrow resonated with her. The man whom she fell in love with (at the time, she never thought that it would be anything except a man) would, one day, capture her heart, and, when he did, that would be the surprise that she had in store for him. She managed to convince her teammates to allow her to substitute a piercing for a tattoo. "You made the right choice," Emily affirmed. "I mean, a tattoo would be hot, but this!"

Paige was finding it hard to breathe, much less talk, under the attention that Emily was lavishing on her breasts. Things only got worse as her nipples grew erect. Paige stifled a moan and had to pull Emily's hands away from the area. She was getting too worked up, and she was _not_ about to have her first time take place there, sneaking around from her girllfriend's parents as they watched TV in the room next door.

* * *

Paige didn't hear the alarm on Emily's phone when it went off at 4:45. She only felt Emily's body pull away from her, and, in her sleep, she pulled Emily back in tight. "Paige," Emily whispered in her ear, "let me go! I have to get back to my room before my Dad wakes up!" Lieutenant Colonel Fields was up at 5:00 every morning. There was no such thing as a day off. Paige sprang to life at the mention of Emily's father. Emily gave her a quick kiss and kissed her piercing. She tossed Paige her Penguins jersey: "You can put this back on, now."

Emily's thoughts were consumed by the piercing for the rest of the day. She kept making subtle references to it. She must have used the word "heart" a hundred times: getting to the _heart_ of the matter; in her _heart_ , she loved Stanford; she didn't have the _heart_ to take the last bag of peanuts on the airplane. Each time, she paused at the word "heart," just in case there was any chance that Paige might miss the reference. While they were eating dinner, she told her parents how she and Paige had gotten together. They were an unlikely couple, she admitted, "But you never know where Cupid's arrow will strike," she said, clearing her throat at the end of that utterance to get Paige's attention. "You've got a little something right there, Hon," she said, swiping with a napkin at her own left breast, to point out the spot that Paige needed to check. Paige looked down for an instant before she realized what Emily was up to, then just rolled her eyes in frustration as Emily stifled a laugh and her parents looked on in amused misunderstanding. They assumed that Emily was teasing Paige about Cupid's arrow. The literalness of the arrow in question would never in a million years have occurred to them.

Despite all of the teasing, Paige really enjoyed the dinner. She had never smiled so much in the company of people her father's age. She just kept looking back and forth between Wayne and Pam Fields, reveling in the way that they interacted with each other. As endearing as it was, it made Paige feel a bit sad. She was looking in on a world that she never knew existed, except on TV, and she realized what she had been cheated out of. Emily picked up on her melancholia and squeezed her hand, giving her a sad smile and a kiss of reassurance on the cheek. Paige did her best to smile.

After dinner, Paige and Emily offered to clean up as Wayne retrieved all of the Christmas decorations from the attic and Pam got them organized in the living room for the next day's all-out blitz of decking the halls. To most families, Black Friday meant shopping. To Emily's family, it meant decorating.

Once the kitchen was cleaned, Emily took Paige for a stroll through Rosewood. She walked with her arms linked around Paige's arm, and they took their time window shopping on Main Street and taking in one or two of the nature trails. It was a crisp late-Autumn day, and Emily had been hoping for an early snow. As she told Paige, Rosewood just looks more peaceful under a blanket of snow. Paige couldn't stop herself from kissing her. She loved the way that Emily looked at the world and saw beauty.

* * *

Emily and Paige begged off the morning shift of decorating so that they could spend some time with Emily's friends. They decided to meet at The Brew, where Emily had worked during the last two years of high school, so that Emily could show Paige off to her co-workers as well.

When Hanna saw her, she clasped her hands over her heart and tilted her head, with an expression on her face as though she were about to cry. She gave Paige a warm hug, "Aw, you're so adorably sweet!" she said, almost whimpering. Paige, realizing that Hanna must have heard the story behind her choice of a heart, glared wearily at Emily, her eyes saying, "Do you have to tell her _everything_?"

Aria cut in on the hug and introduced herself. She gave Paige a much more socially appropriate embrace before pointing to Hanna and asking, "Do I really want to know what that was all about?" Emily snatched Paige by the arm into safety and answered for her. "No, Aria." She followed up with a whisper, "Not right now, at least." Paige rolled her eyes at the thought that her boobs would once again be the topic of conversation among Emily and her friends. Spencer rolled her eyes, too, and greeted Paige with a hug of understanding.

At first, Paige thought that Aria's heart-and-crossbones sweater was another dig by one of Emily's friends about the piercing, but Emily explained later that there was no rhyme or reason to Aria's wardrobe choices. Emily hadn't told anyone except Hanna, and she was sure that Hanna hadn't told the other two.

Paige settled into a comfort zone over coffee with Emily's friends. As Emily had told both her and Spencer, they were actually a lot alike. "In a different reality, I could have called you 'friend'" Paige quoted.

"Star Trek, 'Balance of Terror!'" Spencer exclaimed without hesitation.

"Geek test!" Hanna shouted, "Busted!"

As they drank their brews and chatted, Aria looked up toward the opening door and nodded subtly to Emily. Picking up on that, the rest of the table not-so-subtly turned their attention to the door, where Maya was entering. She waved and headed over to the table, a smile on her face. "Hello, ladies!" she said warmly. She was standing behind Emily and Paige with a hand resting casually on each girl's shoulder. She squeezed Emily's shoulder lightly. "I see that it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas over at your house, Emily. Have you warned Paige what she's in for?" Emily lowered her head, shaking it "no" with a smile. Maya turned to Paige, who was smiling nervously up at her, and mouthed the word "Run!" Paige pretended to get up to flee, and Emily halted her with a hand to her thigh. Maya greeted the rest of table before she excused herself. "Well, I don't want to interrupt! I just wanted to say hello. Have a great day, ladies!"

"That was... Wow," Spencer said once Maya had moved out of earshot.

"Right?" Hanna agreed.

"You guys seem to get along better now that you're broken up than you ever did when you were together," Aria offered.

"Yeah. What does that say about our relationship?" Looking over at Paige, Emily added in a hushed voice, "Are you okay?"

Paige smiled brightly and replied loud enough for everyone to hear, "That was a whole lot more comfortable than my first time meeting her!"

* * *

Decorating at Emily's house was a well-choreographed production, undertaken with clockwork-precision. Paige was intimidated by it all, afraid that one misstep or misplacement on her part would gum up the entire works. She looked to Emily for reassurance but found none. She had never seen Emily this sober and focused outside of the pool. Paige felt great relief when, late into the night, everything was finally in place and lit up. She was half expecting a production crew from the "Crazy Christmas Lights" reality program to show up. She had to admit that the final product worth it. The smile on Emily's face as she hugged Paige was definitely worth it.

"Mom," Emily begged, "is it okay if Paige and I sleep in front of the tree tonight?" Emily asked as if it were a ritual. Her mom pretended to think it over, weighing the pros and cons, before she gave in. "Well..." she said, drawing out the word, "I think that'll be all right, don't you, Wayne?"

"I suppose that we could allow that!" Emily thanked them both with a hug and kiss, the smile still stretched wide across her face.

As they headed upstairs to get ready for bed, Paige expressed her surprise that Emily's parents were okay with them sleeping in the same room. "It's the _living room_ , Paige. I don't think that they're worried that you're going to maul me right out here in the open!"

Paige shook her head. "Oh, _I'm_ not the one whom your parents need to be worried about!"

"Paige, _please_!" Emily was mock-serious, dropping her voice a couple of octaves. "It's the Christmas tree! Some things are sacred!"

Paige got back to the tree before Emily did and rolled out the sleeping bags that had conveniently been placed there during the decorating phase. _Not as if sleeping by the tree had been the plan all along_ , Paige laughed to herself.

Paige laughed out loud when Emily showed up wearing her Santa-red flannel footie pajamas, with puffy white accents on the sleeves and at the rear end. "Do they even _make_ those in adult sizes?" she wondered out loud.

"Watch what you say, McCullers," Emily replied, "or it's going to be a long, cold, lonely night in the guest bedroom for you!" Emily dragged her "Elf" sleeping bag, featuring Will Farrell's picture, closer to the "Frosty" one that Paige had settled into. She climbed inside and backed up into Paige's sleeping bag. Paige sighed contentedly and reached out an arm to wrap around Emily's cocoon. Emily had converted her: She officially loved Christmas.

* * *

Everybody was up and at it bright and early Saturday morning. They piled into Wayne's Cherokee and headed off to the orchards outside of town to pick up some pumpkins. Paige was flabbergasted to learn that Emily's family had never carved pumpkins. She was resolved not only to carve them but to bake their innards into pumpkin pie.

Paige expertly guided them to just the right pumpkins and, using templates from the internet and skills that she had learned from Pru, a veritable surgeon with a carving knife, sliced artistic designs into the pumpkins' faces.

The pies themselves proved to be more of a challenge. Paige did well as Pru's sous-chef, but when she was the one in charge of the kitchen, with the Emily as sous-chef, it was quite a different story. As much as possible, she blamed her ineptitude on Emily's lacking skills as an assistant. By the time the last pie was in the oven, the entire kitchen was a disaster area. No one complained about the final product, though.

* * *

Later that evening, Hanna stopped by to see her friend one last time before the girls headed back to Stanford. The three of them chatted and laughed over pie and coffee. It was starting to get late, and Paige and Emily had an early flight. Before Emily could subtly usher her guest out of the house, Hanna burst out, "Show me Paige's room!"

"Hanna, you've seen our guest room before!"

"I know, but I just want to get the whole 'Paige' experience. You don't really know a girl till you know what kind of luggage she rolls with."

Emily realized that she would never get Hanna to leave unless she acquiesced, so they all headed up to the guest room. They stood there for a few moments in awkward silence before Emily started in on her speech about how lovely it was to see Hanna, but they really needed to get some sleep.

Hanna looked angry. "I don't believe this!"

Emily looked over to Paige, both of them confused. "Don't believe what?"

"Are you serious right now?"

"What?" Emily and Paige said in unison.

"Are you seriously just going to fly back to California without letting me see Paige's boob ornament?" As Emily hurried her down the stairs and out of the door, Hanna protested, "What? _You_ got to see it, Emily!"

"She's my _girlfriend_ , Hanna!"

"So? Paige doesn't mind! You don't mind, right, Paige?" she called over her shoulder.

Paige had to laugh. Hanna actually thought that she was within her rights to expect an audience with Paige's nipple. "I love you, Hanna, but that's never going to happen."

"Are you wearing it right now? At least tell me that! Do you have it on right now?"

When Emily finally got her to the front door, Hanna tried one last ploy. She hugged Emily and whispered into her ear, "Take a picture and text it to me! I won't tell!"

* * *

Sunday morning, Paige steeled herself for another all-day air-travel ordeal. Emily helpfully, and repeatedly, checked Paige's boobs, to ensure that there would be no repeat of the delay at Security that Paige had on the outbound flight. Even after they'd cleared Security, Emily was eager to give Paige a pat down. Of course, she checked both breasts, because one can't be too careful. Paige was in a much cheerier mood traveling back to Stanford than she had been on the trip out to Rosewood.


	12. Emily's Birthday

When Hanna saw who was calling, she knew right away what it was about. She decided to play it coy, though. "Paigey!" she said, in a playful voice, 'How are things in sunny California?"

"Not so sunny in this part of the state, actually. What's it like in Rosewood?"

"Oh, you know. Same as always - cloudy with a chance of boring. So, to what do I owe this unexpected surprise? – No, no, wait. Don't tell me:" she said playfully. "Someone needs advice. Someone needs to get the perfect gift for her girlfriend but has no idea what that would be, so someone had the brilliant idea of calling her girlfriend's dearest and bestest friend in the whole wide world! Does that sound about right"

"Wow – that sounds… uncanny!"

"Yeah, well, this girl's got skills."

"Skills are good! Skills are perfect! Skills are exactly what I need right now! Do you think that you can help me?"

"Honey, please! The two things in this world that I'm an expert on are my best friend and shopping. So, what were you thinking?" Hanna had switched from playful to businesslike in the space of a sentence. "Something romantic, sentimental, sexy, adorable, classic…"

"Uh," Paige interrupted, a little overwhelmed, "You're going to have to guide me here, Hanna. What are some options?"

"Well, if you want something romantic, you could get her a nice Cupid costume. You know, to match your boob piercing. It would be a little inside joke, between the two of you and me. A nice flaming red would go well with her skin tone, and the thong would really show off her – "

"M…maybe next year for that!" Paige couldn't get the words out fast enough. "What else have you got?"

"For sentimental, you know how Em loves penguins?"

"She does?"

"Paige, you didn't notice? Her room is like March of the Penguins!"

"Oh, I guess so, now that you mention it! Hey, that explains why she's always 'borrowing' my Penguins jersey!"

"Yeah. 'Cause that's the reason."

"What? It's not?"

"Are you serious right now?"

"Why, what do _you_ think the reason is?"

"Uh, Paige, give it some thought before you speak."

"I mean, it's comfortable, it's so soft, and nicely broken-in…"

"Paige. She borrows it because it smells like you, silly!"

"Oh! Right!" Paige was having an epiphany. "Kind of like the way I 'mistakenly' grab her shampoo sometimes!" Paige cringed in embarrassment at the thought that her ploy was so obvious to Emily – especially because, on the days when she used Emily's shampoo, she had a tendency to idly pull strands of her hair under her nose and inhale the scent. _She must think I'm some creepy stalker chick!_

"Hello! Paige! Are you there?"

"Oh, sorry. I zoned out. I tend to do that."

"Don't worry about it. I can totally relate. So, how about sexy?"

"We already covered that!"

"No, that was romantic. Now, for sexy, I need a little bit of information about you: Top or Bottom?"

"Next!"

* * *

By the time Paige hung up the phone, she was exhausted. She had only spoken with Hanna for a little less than ten minutes, but it felt as if she had been swimming sprints for an hour. The time had been productive, though. Paige hadn't gotten the solution from Hanna, but Hanna had given her a direction. In the end, this was something that Paige would have to figure out for herself. Hanna may have been an expert on Emily, but she wasn't an expert on Paige - or on Paige-and-Emily.

After some careful thought, Paige hit upon the perfect solution. She had some research to do. She would also need to borrow Vicki's car. Vicki lived in the San Francisco area and had her car with her at school. It was never a problem for her to loan it to her teammates.

* * *

Paige sidled up to Emily's desk and stood there with a sly grin on her face until Emily acknowledged her. She knew that Emily would see through her charade, but she pressed on anyway. "So…"

"So."

"I was just thinking…"

"Oh, you were, huh? Just now?"

"Yes, just now, I was just thinking about the fact that I've never actually asked you out on a real date."

"Yes, yes, that is a true statement, McCullers."

"So, how would you like to go out on a date with me sometime?"

"'Sometime?' Sounds perfect."

"How about next week? Are you free on, oh, let's say, the tenth?"

"The tenth, huh? Any particular reason for choosing that day?"

"No, it just seemed like a good night to go out."

"Wednesday? The middle of the week? Going out on a school night?"

"Yes, Wednesday." Emily was making her work.

"Well, it's your lucky day, McCullers! My regularly scheduled midweek date had to cancel next week, so Wednesday night is wide open. So, yes, Ms. McCullers, I'm free to go out with you on Wednesday, the tenth of December, a day with no particular significance whatsoever."

"So, great – the tenth it is!"

* * *

Paige was in Vicki and her roommate Jana's room to get ready. She had made arrangements to get dressed there so that Emily could get dressed in the privacy of their room. Also, Paige wanted to pick Emily up at her door, like a real date. And, she needed the keys to Vicki's car.

Paige texted Emily to confirm that she was ready and was soon knocking on her door, a bouquet of yellow tulips in her hand. That piece of advice from Hanna that paid off. Emily was thrilled. Emily looked stunning in a simple off the shoulder midnight blue cocktail dress and matching pumps. It was a cool evening, but when she caught a glimpse of Paige's reaction to her exposed shoulder blades, she smiled, knowing that she had picked the right dress. Paige couldn't wait to show her off.

Paige had reservations at The Sea, a fairly quick drive from campus. Hanna hand-picked the restaurant and made the reservation. Paige gave her last name to the Maitre D', who replied, "Ah, yes - Party of two: Paige and Emily McCullers. Please follow me." _Thanks, Hanna!_ Paige was glowing bright red as she explained to Emily that it was Hanna who had placed the reservation in those names.

Emily could tell that it was an expensive restaurant by the décor, but when she saw the menu, she freaked. "Oh, Paige, this is way too expensive!"

"Don't worry. You're worth it!"

"But did you have any idea how expensive it was? Did you bring enough money?"

"I've got you covered."

"Are you sure? I can't let you pay this much for dinner…"

"I'm sure. It's covered. Plastic Daddy." Emily shot her a confused look. "You know," Paige explained, "My Dad's Sapphire Preferred card."

"Paige! You can't use your dad's credit card to pay for my dinner!"

"He won't mind! In fact, he'll love it! He gets double points for dining out!" Emily looked unconvinced. "Look, Emily. I hardly ever use it. Let me just go crazy this once. Enjoy yourself! It's your birthday! Don't worry about how much we're spending – I mean, how much my Dad's spending!" Emily wasn't really convinced, but she decided not to let it ruin their time together. Paige had gone to so much trouble to make her birthday special.

"I thought you didn't like seafood, anyway."

"I don't," Paige admitted, "but it's not my birthday. Besides, I can find something edible on any menu!"

* * *

Hanna had pre-arranged a slice of carrot cake with a birthday candle at the end of the meal. Paige was relieved to see that Hanna hadn't recruited the wait staff to sing Happy Birthday.

As Emily devoured her cake, Paige reached into her vest and pulled out a slim cardboard box. Emily's eyes lit up at the sight. She opened it to find a heart with an arrow, just like the one in Paige's piercing, but on a chain. Paige had tracked down a local body-art shop that sold the heart, and a jeweler who was able to add a mounting to it so that it could go on a chain.

"I hope you like it?" Paige said, hedging her bets. Emily's bright smile gave her the reassurance that she needed. She got up from her chair and put it on Emily's neck. "I got it so that, whenever you touched it, it would remind you of me." Emily's hand instinctively made its way to touch the heart when she heard those words. "And also," Paige continued, "whenever I see it, it will remind me of our connection. It's like our secret - no one else will know what it means to us. Except Hanna, of course."

Emily reached across the table for both of Paige's hands. She leaned over and kissed her. "I love it. It's perfect. Tonight is perfect. Thank you!"

On the way to the car, Paige noticed her date shivering, so, as much as she hated to cover up those magnificent shoulders of Emily's, she took off her jacket and slid it across her. Emily settled into it as though she were settling into Paige herself.

* * *

Paige had given Vicki the key to their room and arranged for her and some of the other freshman swimmers to set things up for their return, with candles, rose petals, the whole nine yards. The teammates were waiting to intercept Emily in the lobby to sing happy birthday to her, and, while they gave her hugs and presents, Paige slipped away and headed up to the room to make sure that everything was in place and to light the candles. When Emily came to the door, Paige greeted her with a kiss and swept her up into her arms. "Do you remember the night that we danced at that frat party after midterms?"

"I could never forget it. Even as drunk as I was, I'll never forget that night!"

"We were dancing. The DJ played a slow song"

"'Put Your Head on my Shoulder.' Old school song."

"Yeah, Paul Anka – and I hustled us out of there, because I didn't trust myself on a slow song."

Emily put her hand on Paige's cheek and smiled at the memory.

"Well, Ms. Fields, I have been waiting 8 weeks for that dance!"

Paige tapped her phone and "Put Your Head on my Shoulder" came on through the Bluetooth speakers. Paige wrapped her arms around Emily's waist, and Emily put her arms around Paige's back, obligingly putting her head on Paige's shoulder.

"By the way, Emily?"

"Hmm?" Emily was too content to look up.

"I still don't trust myself on a slow song," Paige said, as her hands slipped further and further south down the back of Emily's dress.

* * *

Paige kept holding Emily tighter and tighter, and it felt great for Emily just to relax into Paige's body as they danced by candlelight in their small, cramped dorm room.

When the dance ended, Paige gave Emily a slow, sensual kiss. Emily enjoyed the faint taste of wine that lingered on Paige's breath. On reflex, she ground against Paige into the kiss, finding herself getting light-headed. Paige broke first the kiss then the hug and ran her fingers through Emily's flowing hair. She reached down onto the bed and picked up an oversized towel, telling Emily that to put it on. "I'll be back in 5 minutes," she said as she headed out of the door.

Emily was atingle with anticipation. This was happening! She didn't understand the towel, but she decided to trust Paige and roll with it. She sat on the bed and waited, unable to stop her legs from bouncing.

Paige returned in white slacks and a white polo shirt, with a basket of massage oils in her hand, and Emily had to laugh at the sheer adorkableness of it all. Paige laid her down on the bed, on her stomach, and folded the towel down to expose Emily's back. She set to work rubbing the warming oils into Emily's back, and Emily responded with moans and cries of Paige's name. Paige was embarrassed at the effects that Emily's utterances were having on her. No longer able to trust her legs to support her, she sat next to Emily on the bed as she continued the massage.

Emily, too, was finding herself affected by the attention that Paige was lavishing on her. She was ready, and it wouldn't take much for Paige to send her over the edge. Paige's hands were so strong, gentle, and caring. The scent of the candles was relaxing. Emily felt so loved and safe that – she fell asleep.

The room was dark when Emily awoke, and she could hear the faint raling of Paige's breath as she slept beside her. Emily wanted to cry. The evening had been perfect – almost perfect, that is, until she ruined it by falling asleep. She looked at the time on Paige's phone on the nightstand. It was just after midnight. She didn't know whether she should wake Paige and try to recreate the mood or just let her sleep and apologize to her in the morning. In her head, she knew that recreating the mood would be impossible. She let Paige sleep, and got up to change into more suitable sleeping attire.

* * *

The next time that Emily awoke, it was to the gentle, comforting stroking of Paige's hands through her hair. Paige was sitting up in the bed, smiling down at her with a look of pure love.

"Paige, I'm so, so sorry! I fell asleep!"

Paige looked puzzled. "Don't apologize! I wanted you to relax. I'm glad that you got some sleep!" She lay down next to Emily, and Emily threw her arms around her. The wheels started turning in Emily's head. _Oh... so, last night wasn't about..._

It made sense that Paige wasn't ready. She had never been with a woman before. She had never even gone beyond kissing with Sean.

Emily knew that avoiding issues had never worked for them, so she let her thoughts spill out. "Paige, last night was perfect. It really was. But the way that it ended wasn't what I was expecting." Paige caught up with Emily's thought process and turned bright red. "And that's fine!" Emily continued, before Paige could apologize. "I mean, I know that this is new for you – not just the girl/girl aspect. Know that I'm only saying this because we both know that you and I work better when we put everything out in the open. So, Paige, I'm putting this out there: Last night, I realized that I'm ready. And it's cool that you're not yet. I'm not in a hurry. And I'm not disappointed about last night. It was perfect. I'm just letting you know. Because, when you're ready, I want you know that I'm ready."

Emily looked up to see Paige's reaction. Paige had a shy, apologetic look on her face. "I don't think I'm ready yet."

Emily put her hand behind Paige's neck and gave her a kiss. "That's _fine_ , Paige."

"I'll try to get ready, Emily. Really try!"

"No, Paige. When you're ready, you'll be ready. I not going to rush you. And I don't want you to try rush yourself. Because, really, you can't. I want to wait until the time is right – for both of us. I just told you because I don't want you to think that you have to hesitate when you _are_ ready. Because, I'm ready. Well, I guess you get that."

Paige gave her a hug. "I love you so much, Emily."

"I know, Paige. And I love you so much, too."

* * *

Paige was determined not to let things become awkward again between Emily and her. She actually felt liberated by the discussion: Not only did she not have to worry about the fact that she didn't feel ready to take their relationship to the next level, she also didn't have to worry about overstepping boundaries with Emily, because, as Emily had made quite plain to her, she was ready. So, if Emily came back from the shower looking hot in her robe, Paige wouldn't be shy about giving her a pinch. If Emily was leaning over Paige's desk in a low-cut top, as she seemed to enjoy doing, Paige wouldn't feel guilty about enjoying the view. If Emily was cuddled up next to her in bed – Paige knew that she had to stop that line of thinking. She wasn't ready, and she didn't want to be a tease. It would happen in due time. And it would be worth waiting for.

That night, Emily had almost drifted off to sleep when she felt Paige's voice tickling the back of her neck. "Emily?" Emily rolled over onto her back so that she could look Paige in the eye. "I've been thinking," Paige continued. "I wouldn't mind having sex with you in this cramped bed, but I don't think that I want our first time to be in this bed. In this room, even."

"So, where were you thinking of going for our first time?"

"I'm not sure. Where was _your_ first time?"

"Do you really want to have this conversation?"

"I don't need details. I'm just curious."

"It was in Maya's bedroom. Her double bed. Her parents were away for the weekend."

"Were you ready?"

Emily thought it over before she answered. "Yes and no. I wanted it to happen, but I didn't really know how much it would change things, you know? I don't regret it, and it wasn't a bad experience, but I know that it would've been different if I had been older - more mature."

"Oh." Paige paused. That didn't really help her with ideas for her first time with Emily. "So, what was the most romantic time?" Emily laughed. "You can tell me. I promise not to get mad or jealous."

"You really want to know?"

"Yeah."

"The truth?"

"Yes. I'm just curious, as I said. It's not a jealousy thing. I'm not trying to compare the two of us with you and Maya."

"Okay, Paige. Well, the truth is, my most romantic time didn't end in sex."

Paige was intrigued. "How did it end?"

"I fell asleep while my girlfriend massaged me." Paige rolled her eyes. "Don't roll your eyes, Paige! You wanted the truth, so I told you. Last night was the most romantic night of my life." To prove her point, Emily gave Paige a kiss. A mind-blowing, earth-shaking, fireworks-inducing kiss. Paige was rapidly losing control. She couldn't control the roaming of her hands or the contracting of her thighs. But, in her heart, she knew that this wasn't the time or the place. She wasn't ready. She sadly extricated her tongue from Emily's mouth and pulled away from the kiss and from her girlfriend, only to kiss her again, hard. "It's going to be great, isn't it?"

"Oh, yeah. Our first time is going to be off the charts, McCullers!" Emily rolled over onto her side, pulling Paige's arm across her waist as she snuggled in to sleep.


	13. Double Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair Warning: This chapter goes from happy to sad pretty quickly. Don't worry, it's not a relationship bump. (I would never do that to you. Or to Paily)
> 
> If you don't like drama, you can skip the part after the chapter's first break. Pick it up after the next break, or you'll miss out on some Paily cuteness! :)
> 
> Thanks to yulebrinner25 [on fanfiction dot net] for a suggestion that worked for this chapter. If you're not reading her fics, do yourself a favor and start.

As Paige and Emily headed up the steps to their room, Paige asked, "Did you get Vicki's text?"

"I did not. What did it say?"

"She wants us to know whether or not we can go out with her and _Bob_."

"Aw, Bob! She's really hung up on him, isn't she?"

"Yeah, it's just sickeningly cute."

"Be nice, Paige! People probably say that about us."

"No, we're _awesomely_ cute!" Emily rolled her eyes and smiled. "So, Saturday, are we free?"

"Yeah, that sounds good!"

"It'll be nice to have a couple as friends," Paige agreed. As she texted Vicki back, Emily opened the door to their room and let out a gasp.

"Paige! When did you do this?"

Paige just shrugged her shoulders and replied, "I know how much you love Christmas!"

Paige had transformed their room into a winter wonderland, with mini Christmas trees on each girl's desk, snowflakes in the window, and garland everywhere. Emily pulled her girlfriend under the mistletoe and gave her a long kiss.

"It's going to be hard to be away from you over Christmas break. I don't even remember the last time that I had to fall asleep by myself." It was true. Even after their status as a couple had become widely known on the team, and the coaches thought better of assigning them to the same room when they traveled to weekend tournaments, one of their teammates was always willing to switch rooms after hours. Their teammates understood that nothing sexual was going on between the two of them in bed, but If being together helped them sleep, it could only help the team.

"Which leads me to my next surprise." Emily looked over at her, confused. "Do you think that it would be okay with your parents if I came home with you for Christmas?"

Emily beamed with euphoria for a moment before the implications hit her fully. "No, of course they wouldn't mind. But, Paige, you have to see your dad for Christmas! He can't be by himself."

"I know. And I want to see him. We talked – if I could borrow your car, or something, I could drive out there on Christmas Eve and head back to Rosewood on the 26th."

"Are you sure about this, Paige?" Paige nodded enthusiastically. "Okay! I'll talk to my parents, but I'm sure that they'll say yes."

* * *

Emily looked happy, but Paige could also read the concern in her eyes. Emily led her over to the bed and sat down on it with her. She smoothed her hand through Paige's hair, settling her hands on top of Paige's in her lap. "Paige, we don't have to talk about anything that you don't want to." Paige dipped her head, knowing where the conversation was headed. "But if you think that it would help to talk about it, I just want you to know that I'm listening." Paige put her head on Emily's shoulder and began sobbing softly. Emily hugged her close, apologizing. "We don't have to talk about it. It's okay."

Paige shook her head into Emily's shoulder. "No," she said, composing herself, "I want to talk about it. It's just…" Paige fell silent. She sat up, breaking the hug, and slowly lowered her palms in front of her body, letting them land on her lap as she tried to control her breathing. "I have these memories – like snapshots, you know? I was so young. I don't remember the complete narrative. I remember my Dad being happy – with me. And with my Mom. I remember pictures of a normal family: making goofy faces at my Dad to get him to laugh, him hugging me when I was scared, walking between the two of them, holding their hands. I remember them arguing, and how uncomfortable that felt, but I remember them laughing together, doing things together. Sometimes, I wonder whether any of those memories are actually real, or whether it was just my childhood mind, wanting to remember things that way. But I definitely remember when everything changed. I was four. It was the summer. I woke up one day, and my Mom was just gone. And it was as if my Dad just shut down. I really needed him, Emily; I really needed him to help me understand what had happened. But he didn't. He couldn't. Looking back on it now, I can understand why. I mean, he must've been devastated, too; plus, he had to worry about how he was going to raise a daughter all by himself. So, he just became Nick McCullers: Business Dad. I tell myself that he was doing the best that he could, and I tell myself that he loves me, in his own way; - that he's not just, I don't know, fulfilling his paternal obligation."

Emily pulled Paige close again and gave her a kiss on the top of her head. "Paige, he loves you. I can tell that he loves you." Emily thought for a long time before she asked the next question. In the end, she decided that it would be best to help Paige get the whole story off her chest, rather than let it fester. "And, you never found out why your mom left?"

Paige slowly shook her head, sitting up out of the hug, again. "No, not officially. I got the story in bits and pieces through the years – snide remarks that my Dad threw out from time to time. From what I can tell, she ran off with some other guy, like, her high school sweetheart or something. I don't know. There may be more to the story, and I would really love to hear her side of the story, because maybe she's not the psycho villain that he made her out to be. But, Emily, how do you do that? How do you do that to your four-year-old daughter? How do you do that to your husband?"

Emily reached her hand to Paige's shoulder. Paige stood up abruptly. "I... I'm sorry, Emily. I just think that I need to be alone right now," she said, turning her back to her girlfriend.

Emily stood up and put her hand to Paige's back. "Is that really what you want?"

"Yes… No…" Paige turned around, a fresh wave of tears beginning to fall. "I don't know." Emily pulled her in and held her tight. She let Paige cry, deep sobs, thoroughly staining Emily's hoodie with her tears. Emily never let go, hugging as tightly as she could as she rubbed her arms up and down Paige's back. When Paige could cry no more, Emily stood back a little bit. She took off her hoodie and the jacket that Paige was wearing. She kicked off her shoes and sat Paige down on the bed, so that she could take off Paige's shoes. Finally, she laid Paige down on the bed and climbed in next to her, holding on to her from behind with her head pressed against Paige's shoulder blade. Paige was emotionally exhausted, and she just needed to sleep.

Emily woke before Paige did, about an hour or two later. She remembered what Paige had said about waking up and her mother not being there. She decided to stay put, not wanting to trigger Paige after she had just rehashed having gone through that experience with the most important woman in a four-year-old girl's life. Emily lay there, holding on firmly. Then her stomach growled, and Paige turned over, grinning. "I guess that's our new alarm clock!" she joked.

'Hey – how are you feeling, Paige?"

"I feel like a wreck, but I'm glad that you let me talk about it. I realized some things that I hadn't realized before. It was good. So, thanks." Paige put her hand behind Emily's head and pulled her in for a kiss. Emily stroked Paige's hair. It was a tender moment. Emily's stomach growled again. They both burst into laughter. "Come on, McCullers!" Emily sounded upbeat. "Buy your girlfriend some dinner!"

* * *

Paige was becoming accustomed to this ritual. They had 20 minutes till their date with Vicki and Bob. Paige was dressed and ready. Emily was tearing through the closet at a frenzied pace. Paige started giggling. "What's so funny?" Emily spat out in a rushed monotone.

"I was thinking about that night when we went to the frat parties after midterms."

"Yeah?" Emily held a sweater up to her chest for Paige's assessment. Paige cocked her head to the side and tweaked her lip to say that it was so-so.

"You were so blatantly trying to seduce me." Paige laughed at the memory.

"Yeah, well, it worked, didn't it?" Emily was all-business, still in the rushed monotone, looking in the mirror rather than at Paige. "How about this?" Paige nodded her approval.

"I can't believe how clueless I was!" Paige continued, shaking her head.

Emily cupped the side of Paige's face, allowing herself one moment of emotion at the memory. " _Adorably_ clueless," she corrected before she turned around to grab something else from the closet. "This one?"

"It looks fine, Emily. They all look fine. _You_ look fine."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I love you, too. But how is this helping me?"

* * *

Paige and Emily thoroughly enjoyed their couples' date. Vicki and Bob were still in the honeymoon stage of their relationship, trying to learn each other while they were falling over each other to show their affection. Vicki kept looking over at Paige and Emily for their approval. It was a bit like watching your favorite movie with friends who hadn't seen it, constantly checking for affirmation that it really is as good as you told them that it was. Bob was a freshman, but he was taking mostly upper-level classes. He was about as different from Vicki as possible, the bookish nerd to her airheaded jock. But they were cute to watch together, and it didn't take long to see that they brought out the best in each other. It was kind of like watching one of those schmaltzy movies where the social outcast ends up dating the head cheerleader, and they both learn something about each other... and themselves.

"How did you two meet?" Emily wondered out loud.

"Physics project" Bob responded, and Paige and Emily looked at each other, astonished.

"He put an classified in the _Stanford Daily_ ," Vicki explained. "He needed a swimmer for some air versus water thing."

"Acceleration comparisons of fluid flows over the human body," Bob filled in.

"So, I called the number."

"I just assumed that I would be studying the male anatomy, but life is full of surprises. A pleasant surprise, in this case!"

"So, I met him at the pool. When I took off my warm up suit, he got so adorably flustered…"

"Yes. Adorably flustered is my superpower. If only my fellow men realized its power over women!"

"I just wanted to pick him up and give him an ice cream cone."

"Shortness is another of my superpowers. Very disarming."

"So, after he made me do dozens of laps and put me on this camera contraption where he photographed me from every different angle…"

"All in the name of science," Bob defended with a smirk.

"… he said, 'Well, after all that, the least I can do is treat you to a fine dinner.' He took me to McDonald's"

"Hey – starving college student, here!"

"I drove."

"Ah, but I navigated!"

"And we ended up sitting in the lobby till they closed. He's surprisingly easy to talk to," Vicki teased, shoving him in the shoulder.

"I noticed," Paige affirmed. She and Emily were looking forward to more evenings out with the two of them.

* * *

"They make a cute couple, don't you think?"

Emily agreed. "It's nice to have friends nearby. Plus, you know, it feels as if they're _our_ friends, not _your_ friends or _my_ friends."

"Do you think that they'll last?"

"Well, they genuinely seem to care about each other. But it's early days, you know?"

Paige dropped her voice. "Do you think that _we'll_ last?"

Emily tilted her head up to look at Paige. "Is this about your parents?"

"I mean, most couples don't last, do they?"

Emily thought for a while before she responded. She didn't want to downplay Paige's fears, but she didn't want to feed any doubts that Paige was having about their relationship.

"Well, I don't know about most couples. All I know about is the two of us. All I know about is how I feel about you, and what I can see that you feel about me. I'm not going to walk away, Paige. You may change and I may change, but I can tell you this: I'll fight for you. Because what we have doesn't come around every day."

"Promise me, Emily?"

Emily sat up next to Paige and took both of her hands. "I promise that I'll fight for you, Paige McCullers."

"I'll fight for you, too, Emily," Paige replied hugging her close.

"I like how it feels when I'm in your arms," Emily said after the hug, when she leaned back under Paige's arm. "I feel so protected."

"Yeah?" Emily nodded into Paige's chest. Paige kissed the top of her head. "I like the feeling of holding you in my arms. It feels... - never mind."

Emily moved her body back a bit so that she could look Paige in the eye. She wanted to know what sentimental, mushy thing Paige had almost let slip out. "What? What does it feel like?" she asked, smiling.

"There's - it's - however I say it, it's not going to come out good."

"Well, now you have to tell me!" Emily was still smiling.

"Okay, well, don't get mad, but - it just makes me feel that you're... mine, I don't know. Sorry."

Emily kissed Paige under the jaw and reclaimed her position under Paige's arm. "Yeah? Well, I am." Paige pulled her in tighter.

"We're going to make it," Emily assured her, and Paige nodded her head vigorously in agreement.


	14. Christmas in Rosewood

Because Paige had come up with the idea of spending Christmas with Emily's family so close to their travel date, she wasn't able to get a seat on Emily's flight. She exchanged her original ticket for a later flight on the same day, a bit relieved that Emily wouldn't have to see her airport-induced grumpiness again. Emily would have liked to have had a friendly face next to her for the flights – someone into whom she could sink her nails during take-offs and landings. They rode to the airport in San Jose together, went through security (with no wanding incidents) together, and Paige waited with Emily at her gate until her flight took boarded. _Great_ , Paige thought, _Now what am I going to do for the next two hours?_

She decided to get something to eat. That didn't kill much time. She watched people for a while. That got boring rather quickly. She started working her way through the pictures on her phone. That helped to make the time fly. There were so many pictures of Emily and of the two of them together. She realized that she had a smile on her face.

* * *

Emily sat next to a couple that was a little older than her parents. The woman talked with her throughout the flight. She was just so calm and self-assured that Emily hardly noticed that the plane had taken off. Her husband seemed to know every landmark between San Jose and Chicago, and he, periodically drew Emily's attention to things as they overflew them, apologizing each time for interrupting, or saying something like, "I know that you probably want to sleep, but here's something you have to see!" The two of them were an absolute delight. Emily found herself wanting what they had. She could see herself talking to a young lady on a plane some thirty years down the line. And Paige would definitely be looking out of the window, announcing every landmark.

"Do you have a boyfriend back home?" Gloria asked her.

"I…" Emily hesitated, not knowing how it would go over, "I have a girlfriend at Stanford."

"Oh, a girlfriend!" Gloria sounded excited, as though she were meeting a visitor from some exotic, foreign land. "I shouldn't assume," she said as her hand descended on Emily's arm. "I apologize." Emily smiled, to let her know that she wasn't offended. Gloria asked about Paige: How they met, how long they had been together, where Paige was spending Christmas. Gloria and her husband were flying out to see their oldest son's family just outside Chicago. "We're used to having everyone at our house, but the kids wanted to host Christmas this year," she explained. "It's good to let them start traditions of their own, but Chicago in December?"

* * *

As they waited on the ground in Chicago for the doors to open, Emily squeezed Gloria's forearm. "You know, I hate flying. I'm terrified of the take-offs and landings. So, I just wanted to say thank you. I've never felt so relaxed on a plane before."

"You're welcome, dear," Gloria said with a warm hand on top of Emily's. "Have a great Christmas. And, listen, I want you and Paige to come visit us sometime, okay? Fred," she said, turning to her husband, "Give Emily a Christmas card." Fred reached into his carry-on and pulled out a custom-printed post card with a picture of them in garish costumes. He was dressed as a carton of milk, and she was dressed as a wedge of Swiss cheese. The caption read, "The Herndons Wish You a Dairy Christmas."

"It's silly, I know," Gloria apologized, "But there's our address," she said, pointing to where it was printed on the back of the card. She wrote her phone number underneath it. "Now, I'm serious! I want to meet this girlfriend of yours! Promise me?" Emily nodded her head and gave her new friends a hug.

When she got to Philadelphia, she called her dad to let him know that she had arrived and went to check the arrivals board to find out at what gate Paige's flight was due to dock. Paige had checked both of their bags so that Emily wouldn't have to leave the terminal to go and claim her bag and tote it around till Paige's flight got in.

Emily exchanged texts with Hanna to pass the time. She found herself getting very tired. In what seemed like no time, though, a plane taxied up to the jetway. Once the doors were open, Emily didn't have too long to wait for Paige to emerge, and, Emily noticed that she wasn't alone. She saw her girlfriend was talking to a tall, athletic looking guy in a Purdue sweatshirt. And she was _smiling_ \- not being the grumpy traveler whom Emily remembered. Paige's eyes lit up when she saw Emily. "Hey," Emily overheard her tell the athletic guy, "There's my girlfriend, now!" Paige grabbed her as if it they hadn't seen each other in much longer than the eight hours that had actually passed and gave her a kiss, forgetting, for a moment, about her new friend. He stood awkwardly by, not knowing whether or not to wait to be introduced. Paige eventually remembered that there were people other than Emily in the world. "Oh, sorry. Brad, this is Emily. Emily, Brad swims for Purdue!"

"I know that you're an amazing swimmer," Brad said as they shook hands. "Your girlfriend couldn't stop talking about you!" Paige dipped her rapidly blushing head. "It's cool, though," he added genuinely. "It's great to meet someone else who's passionate about the water. Merry Christmas, you two!"

Emily gave Paige a coy look. "Couldn't stop talking about how great your girlfriend is, huh?" Paige smiled resignedly and shook her head, knowing that she'd never hear the end of it. "I know exactly how that feels. By the way, we're going to dinner with these fine folks back in California," she said, showing Paige the post card. "They can't wait to meet you after I talked their ears off about how great _you_ are!"

Once they had their luggage, Emily called her father in the cell phone waiting lot, and he pulled his SUV around. Emily was delighted to see a dusting of snow on the ground. The closer they got to Rosewood, the more snow there was. Emily couldn't contain herself. She was bouncing up and down in her seat, pointing out to her father and Paige how magical it all looked.

When they finally made it home, Emily bounded out of the front seat like a bull let out of the chute, charging off in every direction. Paige whipped her phone out of her back pocket and began posting videos to Instagram – Emily making snow angels, Emily throwing snowballs at her dad, Emily tossing handfuls of snow into the air and watching in delight as the flakes floated to the ground in slow motion. "You'd think that she'd never seen snow before!" Paige said to Emily's dad.

"She gets like this every year. Ever since she was a little girl. I don't know what she'd do if we moved to someplace warm."

* * *

Emily and Paige were settled in their sleeping bags in front of the Christmas tree when Emily broke the silence. "So. It was just kind of weird when you stepped off the plane with Brad tonight."

"Weird?"

"I guess I was surprised to see you smiling like that. I mean, that's not how you were when you traveled with me. And then I saw that _he_ was there."

"Emily, you think..."

Emily rolled over to face Paige, quickly cutting her off. "No, Paige, I don't. I don't think that at all." She rolled over again, not willing to face Paige as she exposed her fear. "But, I admit, I was worried for a second by the sight. And I couldn't help wonder..." Emily didn't finish.

"Whether or not I'm still into guys?" Paige guessed.

Emily turned over briefly to look at Paige again, turning back quickly. "It's okay. I'm sorry. You don't have to say anything. I know that you love me."

Paige tugged at Emily's shoulder to get her to look at her. Emily rolled over again. "Yeah," Paige affirmed, "I _do_ love you. And, to be honest, I don't know whether or not I'm still into guys. I haven't been into anyone other than you since I got to know you. When I was with Sean, it wasn't because he was a guy, and, now that I'm with you, it's not because you aren't a guy. I'm with you because I'm in love with you, Emily."

"Thank you," Emily said. She gave Paige a kiss. "I love you, too." She kissed Paige again, more slowly. "I love that we can talk about things." She rolled over one final time, spooning her sleeping bag against Paige's and relaxing into sleep.

* * *

The next morning, Emily got Paige up early to bake Christmas cookies, which they loaded into the car and drove to Shady Days Nursing Home. Emily went from room to room spreading Christmas joy. Paige was in awe of her girlfriend. Her love of Christmas wasn't just personal; it was something that radiated from her onto everyone whom she encountered. Paige could see how excited all of the residents were to see her.

Mrs. Lacey was a long-time resident who was rarely able to leave her room. When Emily came by, her face brightened. "I didn't think that I'd see you this year! They told me that you went away to college!"

"I did, but I couldn't miss Christmas in Rosewood! And it wouldn't be Christmas if I didn't get a chance to see you, Mrs. Lacey!"

As they talked, Emily learned that, because Mrs. Lacey had fallen and hurt her hip recently, she wasn't able to go and hear the choir from Rosewood High when they visited this year. "I'm so sorry," Emily said, "But Paige and I can sing some carols with you!" Paige, who had been standing off to the side beaming as she watched Emily's interaction with Mrs. Lacey, suddenly widened her eyes in panic. When Emily grabbed her by the arm, Paige protested, "But I can't sing, Emily!"

"Oh, sure you can!" Emily assured her. "It's Christmas! Mrs. Lacey, what's your favorite Christmas carol?"

"I've always loved 'O, Holy Night.'"

Soon, Paige, Emily, and Mrs. Lacey were singing. Emily sounded like an angel. Mrs. Lacey's voice was weak but steady. Paige did her best. Paige didn't know that there was more than one verse, but Emily and Mrs. Lacey sang three verses from memory. Paige faked it as best as she could, joining in on the chorus. Everyone was in tears by the time they said their good-byes and Merry Christmases.

In the corridor, Paige hugged her girlfriend tight. "I love you so much right now!"

"I love you, too," Emily replied. "I'm so glad that you came to Rosewood with me. And thanks for coming to visit the seniors with me. You really made their day."

* * *

When they finished at the nursing home, Emily drove Paige to one of hiking trails with that led up to the lake. They walked arm in arm, with Emily resting her head on Paige's shoulder. "Thank you for coming to spend the break with me," Emily said.

"Thank you for inviting me," Paige replied. "This is the best Christmas that I've had in a long time."

"Same here, Paige." Emily pulled off the trail and leaned up against a tree, her arms around Paige's waist. "You know that Christmas is my favorite time of year. It always means family to me. My dad can't always be where we are, but he always manages to find his way home for Christmas. I don't want to freak you out Paige, but I guess that what I'm trying to say is that it just feels _right_ to have you with us." Emily's eyes were focused on her fingers that were idly fiddling with the zipper on the breast pocket of Paige's coat. "I mean, you feel like family, to me. I… really love you."

Paige smiled. "Come here," she said, drawing her into a kiss. "I love you, too!"

"Come on!" Emily grabbed her gloved hand and pulled her toward the lake. "Let's go watch the skaters!" Emily half trotted the few yards to the frozen lake that had been turned into a skating rink, turning back to smile at Paige, occasionally, to confirm that Paige was as excited as she was. There was a wooden stand off to the side. Emily led Paige over to it and bought two steaming cups of hot chocolate. They sat on a bench, Emily leaning into Paige, as they watched the skaters and sipped their hot chocolate.

After they had downed their drinks and the chill started to set in, Emily worked her way under Paige's sleeve, pleading, "Warm me up, Paige!" Paige obligingly rubbed Emily's arms to generate some heat. As much as they would have liked to have stayed in the moment forever, the cold and Emily's family beckoned, so they headed back to the car, cranked up the heat, and drove back. They huddled in front of the fireplace as the smell of dinner wafted in from the kitchen. Paige recalled Emily's words from before. "This feels like family," she echoed.

* * *

"Hey, you two, don't get too comfortable!" Wayne's voice boomed. "Let's get cleaned up and get the table set!"

Paige and Emily obediently got up to set the table and helped Pam set out the food. Pam wanted a complete recap of the girls' day together, including information on how several of the Shady Days residents were faring. She was excited at the mention of the skaters on the lake. "Ooh, Wayne, when are we going to go? When was the last time that you took me ice skating?"

Wayne just laughed. "I don't even know where I packed away my skates!"

Pam rolled her eyes playfully. "Oh, you're useless! I guess you girls are going to have to take me! Paige," Pam turned, placing a hand top of Paige's, "do you skate?"

Paige laughed at the direction that the conversation had taken. "I've been known to lace up the old ice skates on occasion! If I had known, I would've brought my skates with me! Actually, no; I don't even have them with me at Stanford."

"We can get you a pair of skates! I'm sure that someone has a pair that you can borrow!"

* * *

As they were clearing the dishes, Emily spoke up. "Sorry about all that ice-skating stuff. I don't know where that came from!"

Paige squeezed Emily's shoulder. "I love your mom, Em. It feels as if she's known me all her life."

"That's my Mom - she's never met a stranger! She's really glad that you're here. She was so excited when I told her that you were coming for Christmas." The girls finished up in the kitchen and went to join Emily's parents in front of the TV.

 

 


	15. Christmas with St. Nick

The morning of Christmas Eve found Paige and Emily seated on the couch together. Emily was tucked underneath Paige's arm, her head on Paige's chest. They were mostly silent, their sadness keeping their words to a minimum. In just a few short hours, Paige would set out for her father's house, in Emily's car. As much as Paige wanted to see him, she didn't want to be away from Emily. Especially not at bedtime.

"We're pathetic," Emily said. "It's only two nights!"

"Yeah, one day, when we're an old married couple, two nights will feel like nothing. 'You want to go see your dad? Great! Spend the whole week!'"

Emily sat bolt upright as Paige said this. Paige felt exposed and vulnerable at having spoken of marriage as if it were inevitable, so early in their relationship. Emily put her hand on Paige's chest, and Paige could hear the smile in her voice as she said, "So, you see us married?" Paige glanced up and saw that the smile was on Emily's face as well as in her tone.

"Well, yeah. I mean, I wouldn't be in this if I didn't think that it was at least a possibility."

Emily gave her a kiss. "A _wonderful_ possibility," she corrected. She giggled and reclaimed her position underneath Paige's arm.

They fell silent again, the silence, this time, broken by Paige's phone. When she saw that it was her dad, she picked up right away. "The roads are terrible, Paige," he said. "Maybe you should plan to stay out there with Emily's family."

"But I want to see you!" Paige was almost whining. Emily put a comforting hand on her thigh.

"We'll see each other. Soon. I want to see you too, but I don't want to worry about your safety on those roads."

"Dad, you _can't_ be alone on Christmas Day."

"I'll be okay, Paige. Just stay safe. Merry Christmas. Tell Emily's family that I said the same."

Paige was about to hang up when she decided to try again. "Dad?"

"Yes, Paige?"

"Maybe you could drive out here for Christmas?" Nick McCullers might not have trusted his daughter to drive in the snow, but he himself was a seasoned driver. Paige thought that it was worth a shot.

"I wouldn't want to put the family out."

"They won't mind." She looked over at Emily who was nodding her head vigorously.

There was a long pause. Finally, she heard her dad say, "Okay, P-Kay. You make sure that it's okay with Emily's parents and text me the information. I'll be there."

Paige hung up on the phone with a huge smile on her face.

Emily gave her a kiss, the look on Paige's face telling her what Nick's response had been. "I'm so happy for you, Paige," Emily said, rubbing Paige's shoulder.

"He said 'Okay, P-Kay!'" Paige said in explanation of the smile on her face. Paige hadn't heard that phrase in years. It had been a little ritual between her and her dad, one that had disappearedat the same time that Paige's mother did. Paige had all but forgotten it, except deep in her subconscious.

* * *

Paige briefed Emily and her family on what to expect from her Nick McCullers. Emily was surprised when Paige told her that she wouldn't see her dad in a suit and tie on this trip. Paige explained that her father had made a lot of money as an insurance salesman by being good at reading people and responding to situations. When Emily met him at Stanford, he was in businessman-mode: the potential donor and the father of a team member who was to be respected. In Rosewood, he would be the accommodating guest, the man you'd gladly welcome in your home. And by the end of the evening, you'd find yourself a lot better insured.

* * *

Paige moved her luggage from the guest room into Emily's room, to free up the guest room. After all, she hadn't actually been sleeping in the guest room but in front of the Christmas tree with Emily. There was no reason that their luggage couldn't share a room so that Nick would have a place to stay.

Sleeping in front of the tree was no longer just about Christmas tradition for Emily. It meant that she wouldn't have to sneak into the guest room to snuggle off to sleep with Paige. Even though there were physically separated by sleeping bags, she could still shelter in Paige's arms and belulled to sleep by the steady rhythm of Paige's breathing.

* * *

On Christmas morning, the door opened and there stood Nick McCullers, an overnight bag in his left hand and a bottle of wine in his right. "Merry Christmas!" he said warmly as Paige introduced him to Emily's parents.

Paige had never seen her father in salesman mode. At dinner, she was blown away. He was relaxed and personable. He had a lot to say about his daughter, but not his usual boasts about her times or achievements. He told cute stories about her when she was growing up, some that she remembered, some that were new to her. And he was _smiling_. Nick McCullers was smiling at the memory of times with his daughter.

"Well, it's obvious that you're very proud of your daughter," Wayne Fields commented. "With good reason," he added, laughing good-naturedly.

"I am," Nick affirmed. Then, to Paige's astonishment (not to mention Emily's), he pressed on. "And I know that she loves your daughter. I don't know Emily well, but I know my daughter, and she has a good head on her shoulders. She loves your daughter, so that says a lot about who she is, and how you two have raised her. When I met Emily, I understood why Paige loves her. I can see that she really cares about my daughter, and that makes me happy. And I want to thank you, Pam and Wayne, for raising such a loving, caring daughter. And thank you, Emily, for taking care of my daughter. She's not always as strong as she thinks she is, and she needs someone like you. Thanks for being there for my Paige."

Paige broke when she heard that. _My Paige_. She had to excuse herself from the table and go somewhere to regain her composure. Emily stood up to go after her, but Nick stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

He heard his daughter muffling her tears in the bathroom and knocked on the door. "Paige, may I come in?"

Paige opened the door and hugged her father. She could hardly remember how it felt to do that. "Paige, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry that I haven't been the kind of father that I should have been – the kind that you needed. I can't make up for all those years, but I can do better starting now. I hope that it's not too late."

Paige was just shaking her head over and over on her dad's shoulder while he said all of this. Why was he apologizing? He wasn't the one who left! Paige was sorry that hadn't been able to help him when he needed someone. She didn't know how to put words to everything that she was thinking. Finally, she had collected herself enough to speak. "Daddy," she heard herself say, "You _stayed_. You didn't leave me. You were _always_ there for me. Daddy," (There was that word again.) "I love you!"

"I love you, too, Paige." It had been ages since either of them had said that in so many words.

He held her for a few moments longer. "I'm going to get back to the table," he said as he broke away. "You take all the time that you need."

When Emily's family heard Nick's heavy footsteps approaching the table, they pretended that they had been eating all along, not sitting in hushed anticipation, trying to glean any indication of how things were going. "She's okay," he said in response to the question that hadn't been vocalized. "She'll be here in a minute."

The table was silent until Wayne boomed out, "So, Nick, is this the part where you sell us some insurance that we don't really need?" Wayne broke into contagious laughter. It had spread to the whole table when Paige got back, moments later. She squeezed her dad's shoulder as she took her seat between him and Emily. He looked up and gave her a wink. "Actually," Paige said, doing her best to keep a straight face, " _Everybody_ really needs insurance!"

"That's my girl" The smile on Nick's face was only slightly wider than the one on Paige's. She was getting her dad back. She knew that it would be a long process, and that it wouldn't be easy, but she could tell that things were changing.

* * *

Later in the evening, when Emily and Paige were reclining on Emily's bed watching "Santa Claus Versus the Zombies" on Emily's laptop, they heard a knock against the open door. They looked up and were somewhat surprised to see Paige's dad standing in the doorway. Emily paused the movie and Paige went over to see what her dad wanted. "Hi, girls. I'm sorry for interrupting. I just wanted to give you your Christmas presents." Paige went over to her suitcase and grabbed the envelope with her gift to her father. It was the same as it had been for the past few years: a Barnes and Noble gift card and one from Starbucks. This time, though, the Christmas card had Emily's name on it as well.

Paige was surprised to see her dad stretch out small, rectangular, wrapped boxes to her and Emily. She was expecting his usual: an envelope with a check. They opened the boxes to find identical Movado watches with black faces and black leather straps. They were speechless. "I was going to get you stopwatches, so that you could time each other in the pool, but I thought better of it," Nick said grinning, in an attempt to ease the tension. Paige leaned in and hugged her dad. Emily looked up at him, not knowing the appropriate way to approach him. He stretched out his arms with a smile, and she hugged him warmly. "I meant what I said earlier, you know," he told them, once they had retreated from their hugs. "You two are good for each other. I really am happy that you found each other." With that, he dipped his head and waved as he backed out of the doorway.

"Paige, he's really…" Emily didn't know what the word she was looking for was.

"Yeah," was all that Paige replied as she hugged Emily, choking back a sob.

* * *

Paige and Emily were up bright and early the next morning. They wanted to make breakfast for everyone before Paige's dad got on the road. Emily glided effortlessly through the kitchen, leaving it spotless in her wake. Her father had taught her the Army way: Clean as you go. "I didn't know that you had such skill in the kitchen, Emily."

Emily grabbed Paige by the collar, narrowed her eyelids, and husked back at her, "That's not the only room that I'm skilled in, McCullers!" She drew Paige in for a deep, passionate kiss that was interrupted by a hearty laugh that Paige hadn't heard in years.

"Wayne," Nick called out, "If the smoke alarm in the kitchen goes off, don't worry. It's only our daughters!"

Wayne rounded the corner in time to see Paige bury her bright red face in Emily's shoulder, playfully smacking her girlfriend for having put gotten them busted. Wayne shrugged his shoulders. "Young love," he mused. "What can you do?"

After breakfast, Nick gave hugs to the ladies and a firm handshake to Wayne, and was on his way. And just like that, it was over. Paige had a hard time believing that it hadn't all been a dream. Had it not been for the pictures, she might not have been convinced. As soon as Pru saw Paige's new profile picture on facebook, she texted Paige: "So happy for you! <3 #ChristmasMiracle"


	16. Pru Review

Since Paige had changed her plans to go home for Christmas Day, Pru decided to drive out to Rosewood to see her friend before Stanford's winter break was over. She got in on Sunday night, and, to Paige's relief, she was too tired from the drive to have much interaction with Emily and her family that night. Paige knew that it was just a one-night reprieve: Pru would be only too happy to embarrass her come Monday morning.

* * *

Unlike the rest of the household, Pru was not a morning person. Emily and Paige were used to getting up early for swimming, and early mornings were part and parcel of military life for Emily's parents. By the time Pru stumbled out of the guest room in a desperate search for caffeine, everyone else was already fed, dressed, and ready to take on the day.

Early in the afternoon, Emily, Paige, and Pru headed to The Brew to meet Emily's friends. Emily was eager to reconnect with her them, since she hadn't had a chance to see them since Thanksgiving.

The girls exchanged hugs, small token Christmas gifts, and chit-chat over lunch. In the middle of it, Pru addressed Hanna. "He's cute, isn't he?"

No one else had picked up on the wiry looking guy who kept catching Hanna's eye, but they all looked over after Pru made her comment. Hanna had seen him around town a few times, but she had never met him.

"Do you want to go over?" Pru offered. "I'm a great wingman! - Tell her, Paige!"

Paige threw her hands up. "I don't have anything to do with this!"

Hanna was more than happy to accept Pru's over. She quickly checked her hair and make up, and they made their way over.

The eyes of the rest of the table followed them. Pru was smiling broadly and doing all the talking, but Travis's eyes were glued to Hanna.

"What happened with her and Caleb?" Paige wondered.

"Long story," Spencer started. "He ran off to another town, chasing ghosts or something. It was all very strange."

"I have a feeling that he'll be back, though." Aria opined.

In a little bit, Pru was headed back to the table by herself, a huge grin on her face. She sat down and affirmed, "Told you I was a great wingman!"

"What did you say to him?" Aria wanted to know.

"Not much. Hanna did most of the work, with the hair and the face and the bod. It made my job easy. I just asked him - Travis - what kind of coffee he was drinking and whether or not he was from here. When he said that he was, I told him that Hanna was, too. Then, I came back here. He probably hasn't even noticed that I left, yet."

"So, how did you and Paige meet?" Spencer wanted to know. Paige cringed, knowing the tale that Pru was going to spin.

"Oh, my little Paigey," Pru began in a melodramatic tone, reaching over to hug her friend, who was just shaking her head in disbelief, "So shy. So vulnerable. So desperately in need of me. I used to see her in middle school, sitting by herself in the lunch room, her only friend the textbook that was in her hand. I said to myself, 'The world must not be deprived of this suppressed beauty. I shall unlock it, and share it with humanity, for the good of the species.' So, I befriended her. I groomed her. I took her under my wing. I transformed her from the awkward duckling that she was into the graceful swan that you now see before you." Pru took a bow.

"Yep," Paige said, nodding her head with a smile. "That's exactly how it happened."

"No, seriously, Paige," Emily prodded.

"Well, aside from Pru's embellishments, that actually _is_ pretty much what happened. I mean, I was painfully shy and socially inept. Big surprise, right? You've seen the way that my Dad and I communicate. So, God knows why, Pru decided that she wanted to be my friend, and God knows why I let her, but, I have to say, she did help me out of my shell. And she was there for me to lean on whenever I was insecure in a social setting. Which was pretty often. So, basically, I owe her my life, which is pretty much the only reason that I still put up with her."

"Yeah," Pru added, "but on the other hand, I'm the one who introduced you to Sean Ackard, so I guess that we're even!"

Hanna rejoined the table with a hug for Pru and a big smile on her face. "There you go!" Pru said, gesturing with pride towards Hanna, "Sometimes my matchmaking works, sometimes not so much!"

"Well, it took both of us to get these two together," Hanna commented, pointing to Paige and Emily. Pru gave her a high five.

* * *

After lunch, Paige and Emily took Pru on a walking tour of Rosewood. They did some window shopping and took in some Christmas decorations before returning to Emily's house. "Pictures don't do this place justice," Pru remarked, looking at all the decorations. "When I pulled up last night, the place was so lit up, I felt like coming in for a landing at the airport!"

"You get used to it," Paige told her.

Pru insisted on having Paige and Emily pose for a picture in their love pods, as she called the sleeping bags in front of the Christmas tree that were serving as Paige and Emily's beds. She also insisted on pictures of the two of them in the garish rainbow sweaters that she'd given them for Christmas. Emily gamely played along -mugging for the camera, giving exaggerated kisses and hugs to her girlfriend, drawing Pru in for a couple of shots - until Paige finally had enough. "I'd forgotten how much I hate you," Paige said with a laugh.

* * *

"So, are you ready for this?"

"Yeah, it should be fun!"

"Oh, no, Paige! Ice skating with my Mom is definitely not fun!" It's a competitive sport!"

"Relax, Em. I'm only here to enjoy myself."

Emily knew her girlfriend. Paige would be anything but relaxed.

At first, Paige skated around with Emily at a leisurely pace, laughing, goofing around, and having fun. About the third or fourth time that Pam whizzed by, though, Emily could see Paige's competitive fervor heating up. Paige shot her a pleading look and Emily sighed. "Go ahead, catch her!" she said, resignedly, "I'll be fine!"

Paige sped over to Pam, catching up to her with a fiercely competitive grin on her face. Pam matched her expression and her pace, turning around and skating backwards to taunt Paige. Somehow, the taunting and posturing became ice dancing, as they began executing an impressive range of impromptu choreography, moving from swing, to salsa, to disco, with a few other styles sprinkled in for good measure. Their few fellow skaters on the lake took notice and began cheering them on. Emily couldn't believe what she was seeing. When the two of them, both winded, finally skated back to Emily, her mom said, loud enough that Paige was sure to overhear, "Hang on to this one, Emmy! She's a keeper!"

* * *

On New Year's Eve, Paige, Emily, and Emily's parents stayed up to watch the concerts from the Art Museum in Philadelphia on TV, switching over just before midnight to watch the ball drop in Times Square. Then, it was off to bed for Paige and Emily, who had an early start to get to the airport in the morning.

Pam and Wayne saw them off. Pam gave Paige a long hug at the curb outside the terminal building, telling her, "Take good care of my baby." Paige assured her that she would. She hugged Wayne and stepped aside as Emily made her tearful good-byes.

At the gate, Paige and Emily learned that there were a few open seats on Emily's flight, and the agent was able to secure one of them for Paige. She could make no guarantees about their connection in Chicago, though. Paige might be stuck on her original flight out of Midway Airport.

After what didn't seem to be a very long wait, Paige and Emily found themselves checked in, boarded, seated, and on their way to Chicago. Paige had fresh marks on her forearm from Emily's fingernails.

When they got to Chicago, they were disappointed to learn that there were no seats available on Emily's flight. The agent offered to switch Emily to Paige's later flight, and they agreed. Emily figured that she may as well wait with Paige in Chicago, rather than wait without her in San Jose.

They made their way to the departure gate and decided to look around for a place to eat. As they did, Emily encountered a familiar face. "Gloria?" she asked, unsure that the woman would remember her.

"Emily!" Gloria replied enthusiastically, with a hug. "And this must be Paige! Oh, she's as pretty as you said she was! Fred! Fred!" Fred turned around, "Come meet Emily's girlfriend, Paige!"

They chatted a little bit before Fred and Gloria, who were on the earlier flight, had to head off to their gate.

Paige and Emily found some greasy fast food and a place where they could charge their electronics while they ate it.

As they passed the time playing Scrabble, Paige remarked, "You know, air travel isn't so bad when I'm with you. I can actually relax and enjoy the time in the airport."

"Really?" Emily replied, "Because I don't feel any more relaxed when I'm flying with you! I was relaxed with Gloria. How come you don't relax me?" she teased, poking Paige in the side.

"Believe me," Paige replied, rolling up her sleeve to show the lingering nail prints on her arm, "if I knew how to get you to relax, I would!" Truth be told, though, Paige actually enjoyed being the one whom Emily grabbed onto when she was afraid, and she wore the nail prints with pride, like a medal.

* * *

As they relaxed into the final leg of their trip home, Emily grew philosophical. She had been thinking about what Pru said, that she and Hanna had gotten the two of them together. She asked Paige, "Do you think that we would've gotten together if we hadn't been roommates?"

Paige thought it over. "Maybe eventually, but it would've taken a lot longer!"

"Right? It's cool, the way that fate put us together."

Paige just laughed.

"What? You don't think that it was fate?"

"No, I think that it was the fact that we were the only freshman recruits from P-A."

"So, you just think that it's coincidence? We got together by pure luck?" Emily was a little miffed. Paige changed her tack.

"No, Emily. I don't think that it was coincidence that two of the top swimmers from Pennsylvania both decided to go all the way to the other side of the country to swim for the same college. I don't think that it was a coincidence that it turned out to be the two of us, instead of you and Shana Fring or me and Sydney Driscoll. And I know, every minute that I'm with you, and especially those times when I'm not, that we're meant to be together. So, yeah. I think that fate definitely had a hand in things."

Emily wrapped her hands around Paige's bicep and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek before resting her head on Paige's shoulder. "Good answer!"

Paige looked down at her sleeping girlfriend, who was still holding her arm tightly. Emily looked at peace. _Peace_ , Paige thought. That was the feeling that she was experiencing. Things were good with her dad. Things were good at school. Things were good with her friends. Things were great with her girlfriend. _Could things get any better? Oh, yes_ , she realized. _They could_.

* * *

Emily was still sleepy as they waited for their luggage, and the hum and continuous circling of the carousel was hypnotic. Paige, on the other hand, was buzzed. Emily elbowed her in the side. "Hey, what's gotten into you?"

"Oh, nothing. I've just been thinking."

"Yeah? About what?" Emily yawned.

"You know my cousins? - The ones who invited us for Thanksgiving?" Emily nodded. "Well, they have a cabin at Lake Tahoe. I was thinking that we should go up there sometime, maybe."

"Yeah, we should. I would love to meet your cousins!"

"And you will. But I was thinking, maybe just the two of us could go. Like for a weekend. Head up after classes on a Friday and come back Sunday night."

"Okay. Ohhhh!" Emily got excited. And playful. "And what is there to do at this cabin by the lake, Paige?" she asked, suggestively drawing out her girlfriend's name as she danced her fingers up Paige's arms.

"Oh, you know. Cabin stuff. Skiing, tennis, swimming. Other stuff."

"Other stuff, huh?"

"Yep, other stuff."

"Hmm. I've always wanted to try other stuff!"

"Yeah, I'm definitely down for some other stuff!"

"Well then, hell yes, McCullers! By all means, take me up to this cabin, for skiing. And tennis. And swimming."

"And other stuff!"

"Mostly other stuff!"


	17. Lake Tahoe

Paige sat, nervous and jittery, in the passenger seat, trying her best to keep her body still. She was glad that she wasn't the one driving. They had rented a car for the weekend and were headed up to the cabin that Paige's cousins' family owned up at Lake Tahoe, guided by the navigation app on Emily's phone.

Paige wasn't so much nervous about taking their relationship to the next level. Although that was definitely part of it, the thought of going there - with Emily - mainly filled her with eager anticipation. She knew that she was ready; she knew that she was safe; she knew that Emily was right; - that _they_ were right. What was making her nervous was her desire for everything to be perfect. She and Emily would only have one first time, and she wanted it to be something special.

Emily tried her best to calm her girlfriend by conversation, music, jokes, and gentle contact. To be honest, though, she was enjoying nervous Paige. Paige was always the one who was in control, in the classroom, in the pool, in restaurants on their dates. Paige was a meticulous planner who always knew exactly what to expect. Emily found it cute to see her this way – and the realization that she was the reason that Paige was so on edge just made Emily hot. But part of her worried that Paige was _too_ nervous. "Hey," Emily said, reaching a hand to Paige's thigh, "We don't have to do anything that you're not ready for. We can just enjoy our weekend getaway."

Paige put her hand not-so-innocently on Emily's thigh, and began working her way up. "On, trust me, Fields," she rumbled in a low voice, "I'm _ready_!"

Emily turned on the air conditioner and started fanning herself. Paige laughed to herself, feeling a little more relaxed.

* * *

They arrived at the cabin just after sunset. Paige fished out the set of keys and opened the door. "Oh, fuck! I don't believe this!" she exclaimed once she found the lights.

The cabin was in rough shape. The last guests hadn't cleaned it. The furniture was dusty and threadbare, and the kitchen was looking dilapidated. Paige felt like crying. Emily assured her that it was okay. "It's _not_ okay!" Paige fumed.

"Paige, calm down! Let's just make the best of it!"

"It's our first time, Emily! We only get one! I wanted everything to be perfect!"

Emily grabbed Paige's arms and held them at her sides to calm her down. "Paige, it's all right! It _will_ be perfect, because we love each other. It wouldn't matter if we were in a cardboard box under a bridge, it would still be perfect!" Paige started to protest, but Emily stopped her with a hard kiss.

"You don't understand, Emily. I had everything planned. This was the _one_ thing I couldn't control."

"Oh, I understand! I think that I know you pretty well, McCullers!" Paige didn't get what was so amusing. "Listen," Emily continued, "We can complain and have a shitty time, or we can make the best of it, and look back at this and laugh later." Paige just twitched her lip. "Unless you want to go home? We can do this another time."

Paige definitely did _not_ want to go home. She knew that she had to get her act together, fast. She relaxed herself into Emily's arms, letting out a long, resigned sigh. "I even did some research, based on our heights and body types," she mumbled into Emily's shoulder.

Emily suppressed a giggle. _Of course you did, Paige!_ "Oh, Paige," she said with the laughter apparent in her voice, "I just love it when you talk dirty!"

* * *

"Damn it! There's not even any firewood in this place!"

Emily poked her head into the living room. "That's okay, Paige! We can just turn up the heat!"

"No," Paige said, grabbing her coat, "There _has_ to be a fire! I'm going to go track down some wood."

"Ooh," Emily cooed, her mind suddenly filled with visions of Paige swinging an axe at some poor, defenseless tree, the muscles in her arms and back glistening under a sheen of fresh perspiration. She skipped up to Paige and positioned herself in front of her, grabbing hold of her biceps. "Yeah, Baby! Go chop up a tree for me," she groaned, with a sexual swish of her hips. Paige looked down and saw the sheer desire in Emily's eyes. There was no way that she could walk away from her. Immediately, her lips were on Emily's; then, sloppily, they were all up and down her neck, face, and shoulders. She grabbed Emily under the arms and hoisted her into the bedroom. Emily was screaming with delight and kicking her feet all the way. Paige unceremoniously flung her onto the bed and flopped on top of her, resuming her assault on every exposed inch of Emily's skin.

"Mmm – slow down there, Tiger," Emily said, sitting up and pushing Paige back. She parted her lips and looked hungrily into Paige's eyes as she began slowly unbuttoning first Paige's shirt, then her own. She guided Paige's hands onto her bra, kissing and biting at the base of Paige's neck and moaning as Paige lovingly fondled her chest. Paige removed Emily's bra, and time stood still. Paige was frozen in place at the radiant vision of Emily's chest. It took Emily pulling Paige's head onto her nipple to get things going again, and, suddenly, Paige's hands found a rhythm, caressing Emily's taut stomach and digging her nails slightly into Emily's back as her mouth alternated from one breast to the other, moaning lasciviously into them.

Emily could feel the heat through Paige's jeans as Paige straddled her thigh, rocking back and forth in time with the movements of her mouth and hands. When Emily ground her thigh up into Paige, Paige stopped again and let out a deep moan. Emily pushed Paige onto her back and attacked the button and zipper of Paige's jeans, finally getting the offending garment away from Paige's crotch. _Fuck slowing things down!_ Paige lifted her hips off of the bed and worked her jeans the rest of the way off, throwing them across the room. Seizing the opening, Emily grabbed Paige's center through her panties, causing Paige to spasm her hips up off the bed, rolling them in sync with the circles Emily's palm was forming. Paige clutched desperately at Emily's arms, at the headboard, at the sheets – frantically reaching for anything to ground her. Her eyes were unfocused and a series of gasps and moans were escaping her mouth.

Emily slowed the pace down. She moved her thigh into the spot that her hand had been working, allowing Paige to grind against it as she set about removing Paige's bra. She leaned over and teased Paige's piercing with her tongue as her hand worked on Paige's right breast. Emily began licking, sucking, and nibbling down the center of Paige's torso. She stopped at Paige's abs, placing adoring, open-mouthed kisses on the creases that she encountered there. Paige didn't notice that Emily, with a subtle motion, had relieved her of her panties until she gasped to feel a finger working its way through her wetness. Emily's mouth was still skilfully tending to Paige's stomach. Emily snaked a second finger in, removing them to taste a sample before she inserted her tongue in their place. Paige put her hands on top of Emily's head, pushing her deeper and deeper and grabbing manic fistfuls of Emily's hair. The pain only increased Emily's fervor, as she used both hands to caress in and around Paige's thighs and all over her ass. When she sensed Paige thoroughly losing herself, she moved her right hand to Paige's clit, expertly maneuvering it as, in a low voice between licks, she urged Paige to let go and come for her. Paige felt her stomach tighten and her walls clench as her orgasm exploded from deep within her, leaving her shuddering and moaning as Emily held on tight. "Shit, Emily," she said weakly, out of breath and thoroughly spent.

Emily pulled a comforter on top of her girlfriend. She stood up to take off the rest of her clothes and lay down behind Paige, holding her until she fell asleep. Paige drifted into dreams where Emily held her tighter and tighter, the two becoming one, so that it was impossible to determine where Paige ended and Emily began.

* * *

Paige woke up before the sun came up. She was incredibly horny. She dug the yoga mat out of her bag and started doing exercises off to the side of the bed.

Emily awoke to the sight of her lover inhaling deeply while holding the tree pose. Emily paused for a moment of reverent appreciation of the perfection that was Paige's ass before she broke the silence. "If naked yoga is going to be a thing now, make sure you wake me up for the start of the show next time! What did I miss?"

Paige released the pose and turned, smiling, towards Emily. She walked over to the bed and took her by the hand. Emily giggled in anticipation as she skipped out of the bed, not knowing what Paige had in store for them. Paige wordlessly led Emily to the bathroom and started the shower going. Once she was satisfied with its temperature, she helped Emily inside and washed her meticulously from head to toe. She turned off the water and patted Emily down, handing her her robe and saying her first words of the day: "Wait for me on the bed." Paige gave herself a quick shower before she went to meet Emily.

Emily sat down on the bed, looking at her hands which were folded in her lap, smiling in anticipation of Paige's return. She looked up when she heard footsteps coming down the hall. Paige had the same kit of massage oils that she had used on Emily's birthday, but, this time, Paige wasn't wearing the masseuse's uniform. Emily smiled up at the sight of Paige's naked form, roaming over it from top to bottom with desire-filled eyes. Paige removed Emily's robe and laid her, face down, on the bed, saying, "It's time for me to finish what I should've started the night of your birthday." With that, she straddled Emily's back and began rubbing warming oils into her shoulders. The heat from the oils was not as intense as the heat that Emily could feel emanating from Paige herself. As Emily moaned in response to the working of Paige's hands, the sensation that Paige was leaving against Emily's back became warmer and wetter. Paige began to slide herself back and forth, subconsciously; almost imperceptibly. Emily forced herself to resist the urge to roll over and top Paige. She didn't know how much more of this she could take.

Paige turned around so that she was facing Emily's lower half. She began rubbing the massaging oils down from Emily's thighs to her ankles, causing Emily's moans to become more urgent and feral. Without warning, she sharply smacked Emily on the left cheek, eliciting a sharp gasp as she immediately descended upon the reddened area with a soothing kiss. She repeated these actions against the right cheek, and Emily yelled out, "Oh, Yes, Paige!" as her knees bent and her toes curled into the balls of her feet; her fingers grabbing fistfuls of the sheets. Paige grabbed her right foot and began massaging the heel, instep, and ball with one hand, massaging her calf with the other hand. She rubbed the left foot and the left calf in the same manner before returning her attention to Emily's thighs, rubbing upwards from the knee line. When she reached Emily's center, she spread Emily's thighs and began licking at her wetness from her position on top of Emily. Emily's hands flailed behind her, desperately seeking to connect with any part of Paige's flesh. Paige lifted herself off of Emily's back and put her head between Emily's thighs, continuing to tongue at Emily's center. Emily rubbed the wetness that Paige had left behind into her skin, moaning Paige's name over and over.

Paige pushed against Emily's cheek, signaling for her to roll over onto her back. When she did, Paige curled a finger inside of her and began working it as she licked and sucked at Emily's clit. Paige added another finger, and Emily couldn't hold back any longer. Her hips bucked wildly, rising high off the bed. Paige stayed with her movements as Emily rotated her hips furiously around Paige's deft fingers. Emily was pounding her fists into the bed, throwing her head from side to side, and Paige could feel herself getting close just from the sights and sounds of Emily. Emily heard the noises that Paige had begun to make and sensed the slight change in rhythm that Paige was keeping inside her. She bent her knee, raising her thigh within range of Paige's wetness. Paige noticed and straddled Emily's thigh, pumping herself against it and pumping her fingers into Emily's center with renewed fervor. Emily was the first to explode. Paige followed soon after. When they had both recovered, Paige kissed slowly up Emily's stomach all the way to her lips.

* * *

Emily settled in behind Paige and savored the moment. "So, seriously," she breathed out at last, "How long has naked yoga been a thing? Because I think that I have a new favorite spectator sport."

Paige giggled shyly. "Yoga is just something that I do when I need to release tension. The naked part was a first."

Emily felt giddy all of a sudden. And playful. "And do you have any more tension to release?" she asked, kissing and sucking across Paige's shoulders and back.

Paige slid Emily's hand between her thighs, letting her feel the wetness there. "What do _you_ think, Emily?"

Emily pushed Paige over onto her back and sat on top of her. "I think that I know a much more fun way than yoga for us to release it."

* * *


	18. Unleash the Beast

After a lazy morning in bed, Paige and Emily drove around and found a convenience store where they picked up some protein shakes and a couple of sandwiches. Paige wanted to burn off some calories after lunch. So did Emily, but she had a different idea in mind.

"Come on! Let's go to the pool," Paige pleaded, ignoring the onslaught of kisses that were peppering her face. "We're supposed to train this weekend. Let's just get an hour of aerobics in."

"Yeah, we'll definitely get an hour of aerobics! More, if you play your cards right!"

"We need to keep up our stamina…"

"Oh, I'm counting on it!" Emily was still depositing rapid-fire kisses on Paige's face and neck.

"Okay, I'll make a deal with you: Let's swim for an hour, and I'll let you watch me do naked yoga."

"Been there, done that." More kisses landed.

Paige tried a different tactic. "Swimming makes me horny?"

Emily stopped in the middle of going in for a kiss. "You're just making that up," she realized, and started up with the kisses again.

"Em!" Paige pleaded.

"Oh, fine! Let's go spend an hour in the pool. But you'd better be pretty damned horny by the time that hour's up, McCullers!"

* * *

Emily had a plan. She knew how competitive Paige was, and how worked up she gets when she loses. Even though they were just doing a light practice, Emily's plan was to swim just fast enough to outpace Paige, without making a point of the fact that she finished first and without appearing to be exerting herself. She knew that Paige would pick up on it and would not be pleased.

At first, Paige was supportive, celebrating how well Emily was doing in the pool. "Wow! You're really on today, Em!"

Emily played it casual. "Must be that good McCullers lovin' that I got last night!"

After a few more go arounds, Emily could see that it was getting to Paige. She stoked the fires a bit by asking Paige whether or not she felt sick, or was getting cramps from lunch. Paige was trying to maintain her equanimity. "I guess it's just not my day." Inside, she was steaming. The hour couldn't end fast enough. Without a word, she got up and stomped to the showers, leaving Emily in her wake.

Emily worried that she'd overdone it. She had to be careful how she approached things. She didn't want to waste any of their weekend away by fighting. She gathered up her things and went into the shower area, climbing in behind Paige and scrubbing her back. Paige pulled away from her. She pinched Paige's butt. Paige squealed and turned around. Emily was ready for this and pounced on Paige's lips. Paige wrapped her arms around Emily and pulled her in closer. Emily moved her hands down to Paige's ass and began kneading her cheeks. Paige lowered the straps on Emily's swimsuit and started kissing Emily's breasts. Emily ground her thigh between Paige's legs. Paige spun her around against the wall, but, in doing this, she hit the shower handle turning the water ice cold. Both girls shrieked and Paige shut the water off.

"How fast do you think we can get dressed and get back to the cabin?" Emily asked. They set a world record.

* * *

No sooner had the door closed than Emily found herself pushed up against it, with Paige planting hard kisses on her mouth. Emily pulled tight fistfuls of Paige's hair, causing her to growl and making her muscles tense. Emily unzipped Paige's jacket, and Paige paused to let it fall to the ground. Emily moved adoring hands down to Paige's shoulders, gripping the swimmer's muscles hard. She slid them down to appreciate the tensed biceps of the arms that were pushing her against the door. Emily pushed Paige's shirt up a bit and slipped her hands underneath. She needed the feel of Paige's skin, and she moved her hands up and down Paige's spine, feeling every vertebra. Paige leaned her knee into Emily's sweatpants and found a rhythm. She could feel Emily groaning into her mouth. Without a warning, she sank to her knees and yanked Emily's sweats down, grunting as she began licking and kissing Emily's hot and wet center.

Emily was screaming, tearing at Paige's hair and digging her nails into Paige's back. Her plan had been to unleash the beast, and unleash it she had. Paige wrapped her arm under Emily's ass and hoisted her into the air, depositing her on the kitchen counter. Emily let out a startled gasp when her bare skin landed on the cold counter. Paige paused for a second, and Emily urged her on, growling out "Yeah, Paige! Fuck me on the kitchen counter!"

Emily's tone and her use of profanity stoked something primal inside Paige. She knew that she was being aggressive, and there was fear in the back of her head that she was over the top. Emily's words gave her the green light. She threw Emily's legs onto her shoulders. Emily leaned back on her elbows, watching Paige's head bob back and forth in between her legs, her hair tickling Emily's inner thighs. Paige's hands were grabbing at the outside of Emily's thighs and her ass. Emily caressed the muscles of Paige's upper back. As she felt herself getting close, she started digging her fingers into Paige's triceps. She could feel her nails just penetrating Paige's skin. The sensation of pain kicked Paige into a still higher gear. She pushed warm fingers into Emily's center, working her tongue around Emily's clit as Emily's walls clenched around her. Emily came loud and hard, and Paige was filled with a sense of accomplishment and pride. Her eyes locked with Emily's in an exchange of tender love. She picked Emily up much in the way a bride would be carried across the threshold on her honeymoon, with an arm underneath Emily's knees and another underneath her back as Emily threw her arms around Paige's neck.

Paige cringed briefly at the sight of the stain that they had left on the kitchen counter.

Emily's eyes never left Paige's as Paige effortlessly carried her into the bedroom, locking lips all the way, and gently laid her down on the bed. Paige lay down next to her and pulled the blanket over them as she smoothed a hand through Emily's hair. Emily took note of their states of dress; she herself bottomless, Paige fully dressed. She sat up, remembering, "I believe that I was promised some naked yoga if I went to the pool with you!"

Paige got up and got out of her clothes. "Naked yoga later. Naked cuddling now."

* * *

Emily got out of bed, pulling the blanket around her to cover herself as she set off to find Paige. She was in the kitchen, vigorously scrubbing the counter, and the smell of bleach was in the air. Emily rolled her eyes. "I take it that we're eating out tonight?" Paige's eyes widened and she opened her smiling mouth to say something, but Emily cut her off. "Don't even go there, McCullers!"

After a leisurely dinner, Paige and Emily returned home to the cold cabin. Emily looked at Paige with puppy-dog eyes. "I thought that you were going to build me a fire!"

"I thought that I _did_ light a fire," Paige responded, and they both laughed at the cheesiness.

Emily took Paige by the hand and led her into the bedroom, where she sat down on the bed. Paige moved to join her there, but Emily halted her, putting her palm on Paige's stomach. She looked up at Paige, pointing to her jacket and then to the ground. Paige removed her jacket and threw it to the ground. Emily pointed to Paige's shirt and to the ground. Paige pulled her shirt over her head and threw it to the ground. Emily put her hands just above Paige's hips and drew her closer to the bed, so that she was standing between Emily's legs. Emily was gazing hungrily at Paige's midsection as she ran her hands up and down Paige's sides. "That tickles!" Paige smiled.

"You have the most incredible abs," Emily crooned, her voice dripping with desire. Paige threw her head back and moaned. She reached both hands behind her head and pulled her hair up, tying it into a loose braid. Emily caught the heave of Paige's chest and the flexure of her shoulders as she raised her hands. She extended the movement of her hands higher up Paige's sides, going all the way to the armpits and down again. She pulled Paige down by her shoulder blades, causing her to bend her knees as Emily met her lips in a deep kiss. As they continued the kiss, Paige's posture became uncomfortable, so she bent a knee onto the bed between Emily's thighs, standing on her other leg which was on the outside of Emily's thigh. Emily took full advantage of Paige's position, grinding into the knee that was on the bed, moaning into Paige's mouth as she removed Paige's bra. She broke from the kiss momentarily, grinning widely. The novelty of Paige's piercing had yet to wear off.

Paige set to work relieving Emily of her clothes. Emily, now topless, was still grinding into Paige's knee as Paige began affectionately exploring Emily's breasts. The novelty of Emily's breasts had not worn off on Paige.

Paige gently pushed Emily down onto the bed and climbed on top of her, kissing her slowly and continuing to massage her chest and sides. Emily enjoyed the feeling of Paige's stomach muscles against her own. She was desperately tugging away at Paige's jeans and underwear, impatiently grabbing Paige's ass underneath the garments, frustrated that she couldn't get them off. Paige stood up quickly, pushed her remaining clothes down, stepped out of them, and flopped back on top of Emily, kissing her with renewed intensity.

Emily pushed Paige off of her so that she could stand quickly and remove her remaining clothing. Finally free of them, she pulled Paige into a sitting position, with her feet hanging off of the side of the bed. Emily sat in her lap, facing her, with Paige between her legs. Paige could feel Emily's heat on her belly as Emily kissed and sucked at her neck. Paige pulled Emily's body closer into her, her own body aflame wherever it found contact with Emily's skin.

Emily gently pushed Paige's back down on the bed, tucking her calves under her knees as she sat on Paige's pelvis, never breaking the kiss. Paige rotated her body, pulling her legs up onto the bed, using an arm to pull Emily along as she went. Emily sat up and raked her nails down Paige's sides, leaving faint marks in their wake. She kissed and kneaded Paige's breasts and shamelessly teased Paige's abs, armed with the knowledge that she was ticklish.

Paige was smoothing her hands over Emily's thighs, contemplating the softness of the skin atop those hard muscles. She wanted her mouth on that skin; she desperately wanted her mouth all over Emily. She scooted up beneath Emily and sat up, rolling Emily beneath her, kissing at her collarbone, working her way single-mindedly down to Emily's thighs. Her quick braid was quickly gone as Emily grabbed handfuls of her hair, pulling Paige in where she needed her. She was too worked up for any more teasing. Paige looked up at her with a sly smile. The desperation that she saw in Emily's eyes was all the inspiration that she needed. When Emily weakly called out, "Paige... _please_ ," it sent Paige over the edge. Soon, she was sending Emily over the edge as she buried her tongue deep inside her, her thumb and forefinger tending to Emily's clit. Emily squeezed her nipples, alternating between the two with one hand. Her other hand was riding the back of Paige head as it bobbed up and down, into and out of Emily's wetness.

Emily came hard. Paige remained in place, enjoying her lover's sweet nectar until Emily physically pushed her head away. Paige lay behind Emily and draped her arm over her. "Oh, no!" Emily protested, moving Paige's arm off of her and moving Paige herself onto her back. "You're not getting off that easily!"

Paige lay on her back, and Emily straddled her on her knees, facing Paige's feet. As she bent down to kiss Paige's thighs, Paige couldn't resist the beauty that was on display before her. She reached out and began squeezing and rubbing Emily's ass, eventually tilting her head up to lick at Emily's folds and suck at her clit. Emily was distracted momentarily, but set herself determinedly to work between Paige's legs. Paige was incredibly wet, and Emily's fingers slid easily inside her. Paige allowed her head to drop back against the pillow as Emily stroked her into a frenzy. Her hands continued to massage Emily's ass, feeling the need for her hands to be in some kind of physical contact with the woman who was blowing her mind. She tried repeatedly to lift her head up into Emily's sweetness, but she was overwhelmed by wave after wave of Emily's assault on her center. She eventually lost the ability to control the movement of her hands, finding herself only able to pound at the mattress and claw wildly at the sheets.

Emily swung down and changed her orientation so that she was facing Paige. She pulled Paige's hand into her crotch, so that Paige could help herself, supplementing what Emily's tongue was doing. It gave Paige a thrill to stroke herself while Emily was watching, so Emily backed away, focusing instead on kissing and massaging Paige's legs and ass. She moved up to the side of Paige and yanked at Paige's piercing while teasingly circling her other nipple with her tongue. Paige was in sensory overload. Her orgasm was mind-blowing.

* * *

After a moment of reflection as she lay staring into Emily's eyes, stroking her hair, Paige asked, "So, how does this work when we get back to school? I mean, we're already sleeping in the same bed; how are we going to get any actual sleeping done?"

"Hmm," Emily pretended to think it over, "I guess we'll have to put ourselves on a schedule!"

Emily could see the wheels turning in Paige's head. "Yeah, so, like, on ordinary weeks, when we don't have a meet..."

"Paige!" Emily interrupted, "I was _kidding_! I'm sure we'll work something out, but, for now, let's just be present in this moment and enjoy our last night here."


	19. Homeward Bound

Paige and Emily were planning to get an early start back to campus on Sunday morning, but, after a night of cuddling next to Emily, breathing in her scent, and feeling her warmth, Paige woke up in the mood. She lifted the hair off of Emily's neck and began peppering the exposed skin with tender, soft kisses. Emily didn't need any encouragement. She had a huge smile on her face when turned over towards Paige. She reached her hands to the side of Paige's face, rubbing her earlobes between her thumbs and forefingers as she applied long, wet kisses to Paige's neck and jaw. Their legs intertwined, each ravenously grinding her thigh against the other's. Paige grabbed Emily's ass, pulling her in harder against her thigh, grunting ferociously. Emily took advantage of the opportunity to roll on top of Paige. She immediately inserted two fingers and backed them with her knee to drive the point home. Paige let out a primal scream as she drove her hips into Emily's fingers, returning her hands to caress Emily's ass and in and out of her thighs.

Emily pinched Paige's nipple with her free hand, sucking and kissing around Paige's piercing on the other breast. She could feel Paige getting close; clenching around her fingers as her breath became more ragged and her moans became louder. She lowered herself slightly, kissing and biting Paige's taut stomach and tickling her hand up Paige's side as Paige exploded in contractions of ecstasy.

Emily laid her head down on Paige's stomach, gently rubbing her girl's sides as she relaxed into their few remaining moments in the cabin.

Until Paige broke the silence - and the mood.

"See? This is what I was worried about. What happens when we get back to campus? I mean, what's to stop this from happening all the time?"

Emily giggled into Paige's stomach. "Someone thinks highly of her sexual prowess!"

Paige sat up. "No, I'm serious, Em. We can't afford to have mornings like this once we're back in school."

"Oh, Paige, relax. So your girlfriend wakes up feeling frisky and fucks you brainless from time to time. Is that the worst thing in the world?"

"Well, no, when you put it that way…" Paige lay back down on the mattress with her arm behind her head, the other arm stroking Emily's hair. Before long, she started to feel herself falling asleep. She knew that they had to get going, though, so she bolted out of the bed, pulling Emily up by the hand. Back to reality. There was one thing missing, though. "Emily?" she started timidly, looking down to see a look of pure love in Emily's eyes.

"Yes, Paige?"

"This is going to sound weird, but, there's sort of something that I've wanted to try for a long time. With you."

Emily was determined not to let Paige see how nervous she was about where this was going. She wanted Paige to feel safe. And when it came down to it, she knew that she trusted Paige, whatever it was that she wanted to try. "What is it Paige? You can ask me anything."

Paige's response was halting. "Well, ever since I started… noticing you… I've just had this urge – fantasy, more like – to…" Paige laughed self-consciously. She couldn't believe what she was actually about to admit to Emily. Emily put her hands on Paige's shoulders and gently rubbed them, to calm her down and encourage her to continue. "to… I can't believe that I'm saying this out loud." She decided just to spit it out: "Can I motorboat you?"

Emily laughed, slightly relieved. She threw her head back and opened her arms wide, to give Paige better access. "Have at 'em!"

* * *

After the girls showered, they tidied up the cabin a bit, wanting to leave it in better shape for the next visitors than it had been left for them. They packed up their belongings and loaded the car. Since their plan to get an early start on the drive home had been sidetracked, they decided to make the most of the last bit of free time that they had left and see a little of the town. They passed a cute little antique shop and went in to take a look. The store was full of charming, horribly overpriced trinkets, and they were amusing themselves by making fun of all the inventory. They put a quick end to their game when an official-looking young man in a shirt and tie showed up.

"Ladies," he said in a voice like honey, "You certainly seem to be enjoying our stock!"

"Sorry," Emily said sheepishly. "I'd go crazy if I worked in a shop like this! I would just want to play with everything all day!"

"Oh, trust me," he said in reply to Emily's statement, but with his eyes fixed on Paige, "I understand what you mean. Sometimes, it takes all of my willpower to keep my hands to myself." He quirked his eyebrow to emphasize his point. Without thinking, Emily grabbed her girlfriend's arm defensively.

"Yeah. Well, I think that we're just going to go, right Paige?"

"Here, let me give you my card," he said, offering it up to Paige _of course_ – although she had yet to say a word to him. "My name's Byron. If you're ever in the market for something _exotic_ , do give me a ring."

Emily intercepted the card and put it in her pocket. "We'll be sure to do that, Byron. Come on, _Honey_."

When Emily was sure that they were out of his sight, she let go of Paige's arm in a huff.

"'Honey?' That's a new one!" Paige joked, with no idea that Emily was upset, or why. Emily just rolled her eyes. "What's the matter, Em?" she asked innocently.

"Yeah, what's the matter?" Emily said mockingly. "What's the matter with _Byron_?" She sneered at the name.

"Right? He was just overflowing with personality, wasn't he?"

"He was overflowing with _something_ , all right."

"Well, I can understand why he would be like that. It must be hard to move inventory at those prices. He probably has to come on strong."

"Paige." Emily was fed up. "Don't be so oblivious. He was hitting on you."

Paige tried to laugh it off, but she saw from Emily's expression that she wasn't joking. "Oh, come on, Em! I think I'd know if someone were hitting on me!"

"Of course you would!"

"What? You think I wouldn't?"

"Paige. Your roommate – who had already confessed that she had feelings for you – kissed you on the lips every night, paraded around half naked in front of you, and slept with her body wrapped around yours in your fucking bed, and you had absolutely no clue that you were being hit on!"

Paige opened her mouth to protest, but she realized that she didn't have a leg to stand on. Then it occurred to her, "But you were there in the shop with me, Emily. If he were going to hit on anybody, it would've been you!"

"Nice try," Emily said, shaking her head in exasperation.

"What? Why would anybody hit on me over you?"

"I swear, Paige!" she spat, losing her patience, "Sometimes, this whole clueless thing of yours is cute, but right now, it's just annoying."

Paige switched tactics again. "Well, even if he _was_ hitting on me, Emily, you know that I'm not interested in anybody but you! _I_ wasn't hitting on _him_!"

"God! I know that Paige it's just… Ugh! It's so aggravating! You encourage people to flirt with you because you don't even realize that you're being flirted with, and, hello! I'm your girlfriend! I'm right here!"

"Yes. You're my girlfriend." Paige was trying to skirt the fine line between being calming and coming off as patronizing. "And I guess that's why I can't tell that people are flirting with me, because I can't see anyone but you."

"Oh, sure. Smooth, McCullers. Whatever," Emily said dismissively. Paige gave her an intense stare, to drive home the point that she could only see Emily. Emily softened, deciding not to let some jerk ruin their day. She leaned into Paige's side and they started walking again.

"Does this count as a fight?" Paige asked after a while, "Because I've never had make-up sex before!"

Emily couldn't help muttering to herself, "You never had _any_ sex before you met me, and don't you forget it." Paige just kept flashing her sweet, oblivious, I-have-no-idea-the-effect-that-I-have-on-people smile.

They found a place to stop for breakfast. As much as she tried to move on from her anger and jealousy over the Byron incident, Emily was still a bit steamed. It didn't help seeing that goofy grin on Paige's face as she looked at the menu. Emily finally pulled the menu away from Paige's face and asked what was so funny.

"Nothing! Can't I just be happy?"

"You can be happy. I just want to know why you still have that dorky smile plastered across your face."

"I don't know. It just feels nice, you know? – to know that you love me; that you're bothered when someone else pays attention to me."

"Of course I am. Are you going to tell me that you wouldn't be bothered if someone were hitting on me?"

"No, of course I'd be bothered. I _am_ bothered, every time that it happens. But, you know, it's just nice to know that you get those feelings, too. That someone like you would actually feel that way about someone like me."

"Yeah, I love you, Paige," she said sincerely, tilting her head. "I want you all to myself."

Paige giggled and pumped her fist in the air. She let out a small, "Yay!" under her breath.

Emily shook her head. "Oh, God. You're so adorkable!"

* * *

Emily woke up at the swerving of the rental car. She took a second to get her bearings before she cried out, "Paige!"

"Oh, hey, Em. We're making good time. You can go back to sleep."

"Paige, slow down. You're going to get us killed!"

"I'm not speeding. It's the rest of these fools who don't know how to drive," Paige said as she fishtailed into and out of the passing lane. "Get out of the slow lane, Grandma!" she yelled into the rear view mirror.

"Paige, pull over at that Target up ahead!"

"What? You need something?" Paige glanced over to the passenger seat briefly. "We're making great time, Em," she reminded her.

"PAIGE!"

Paige knew from Emily's tone that she'd better not say, "What?" Instead, she shot Emily an innocent look.

"Pull. Over. At that. Target."

Paige shrugged her shoulders in surrender, changed lanes, and pulled into the lot.

"Okay - try to be quick," she said, as though she were still in control.

"Give me the keys."

"Wha?"

"The Keys. Give me them."

"I feel fine, Em. I'm cool to keep driving."

Emily held out her hand and stared wordlessly into Paige's eyes. Paige threw her hands up and started to say something, but Emily intensified her stare. Paige took the keys out of the ignition and defeatedly handed them over. "I'm not going to let you kill us - or someone else on the road - because you're so fucking competitive behind the wheel. "

Paige put her head down and started muttering to herself, trying to save a little face as she undid her seat belt. She walked behind the car on her way to the passenger seat, once she saw that Emily was walking in front.

Emily got into the driver's seat and took a moment to calm down. Paige shrank into the passenger seat, trying to make herself small. She was still muttering to herself. "Paige, calm down," Emily said in a soothing voice. "You're way too keyed up." She reached out a hand to Paige's back, but Paige reflexively jerked further into herself. Emily started giggling.

"Oh, so this is funny to you?" Paige's gaze was still fixed on the window.

Emily tried her best to control herself, but Paige was just being so damned cute. "No," she finally said. "This is totally serious!" another giggle escaping her lips.

Paige let out a deep sigh, with a long shake of her head. "It's a damn good thing that I love you so much."

Emily reached over and stroked her shoulder. "Yes, and it's a damn good thing that you're so great in bed."

Emily put the car in gear and they got back on the road. After a minute, Paige looked up meekly and spoke. "Speaking of 'in bed,' am I going to get to see 'Give me the keys' Emily there sometime?"

Emily gave her a devilish grin and an elbow-jab to the ribs. "I guess that depends how hard you're driving, McCullers!"

* * *

Paige whipped out her phone when she heard it buzz, a little confused when she saw who was texting her. "Um," she said reading it, "Hanna wants me to tell my girlfriend to start responding to her texts." Emily shook her head with a smile. "Did you get her texts?"

Emily gestured toward her purse. "See for yourself!"

 **Hanna:** Who topped?  
 **Hanna:** Still waiting for that nip pic.

Paige laughed it off. "You've got to love Hanna."

"Yes, I suppose you do. Did Pru text you?"

"Yeah, just some lame jokes about Paige McLovin. The same ones she's been using as long as I've known her."

"Are you ready to face our teammates?"

"I'd like to think that they'll be a little more mature about things." They looked at each other and said, at the same time, "Nah!"

* * *

By the time they got the car back to the rental agency, got back to campus, got unpacked, and got ready for bed, they were both exhausted. Paige was stalking around the bed with a look on her face like that of a fourth-grader outside the principal's office. Emily was under the covers, waiting impatiently for Paige's company. "Paige! What are you waiting for? Just get in here!" She turned around and saw the look of sheer panic on Paige's face. She started again, with more understanding. "Listen, you're just going to climb in bed and cuddle with me, the same as always."

"But what if we can't – I can't – control myself?"

Emily stayed calm. "Paige, we've been sleeping in this bed together practically since the beginning of the school year, and we've never had any problems with self-control."

"Bu we weren't sleeping together before!"

"That's exactly my point! We could've crossed that line at any time over the past three months, but we have self-control. And if we decide to fool around from time to time, that's fine. We know how to discipline ourselves when we need to."

Paige started to relax. She managed a small smile as she climbed in behind Emily. Emily sighed in relief at being back in Paige's arms.

"And if I happen to feel the urge to fall asleep, you know, holding your boobs?"

Emily reached for Paige's hand and pulled it on top of her breast, leaving her hand on top of Paige's. "Hell yes, McCullers! Hell yes!"


	20. Cooling Off

It took the better part of two weeks for Paige and Emily to be able to settle down their urges and just sleep together - without _sleeping together_ \- again. Paige's fears proved justified, as it turned out to be harder to put out the flames of passion, once they had been lit, than to avoid igniting them in the first place. As Paige explained it, it's easier to say no to smoking if one has never smoked than to stop smoking, once one has started.

"So, Emily's like your cigarette?" Vicki joked.

"Yes, yes she is. She's smoking hot, and I can't wait to wrap my lips around her and. . ."

"Okay!" Bob interrupted. "I believe that you've painted a sufficiently detailed picture, Paige!

It really was difficult setting limits when Paige and Emily spent so much time together. The fact that they were so physically attracted to each other, coupled with the fact that their sport was swimming – parading around each other in skimpy, wet swimsuits that clung to their curves – only added flames to the fire. If that had been all that there was to life at Stanford – rooming together and swimming – they would have had no problem: Swimming in the mornings, sex in the afternoons, workouts in the evenings; lather, rinse, repeat. However, there was much more to college life than that, and their late-night make-out sessions had the dual effects of taking away from their study time on the one hand, and making them too tired to concentrate in their classes on the other hand.

So, they had to put limits on themselves. They resolved to work things out in a manner that would still allow them to sleep in the same bed. They knew that their unbroken string of nights together would have to end eventually, so they wanted to enjoy the experience for as long as they could. They set up a schedule: Two hours of study time after dinner; all romantic activities had to end by midnight.

They allowed themselves one cheat-night per week.

They also thought that it would help them to cool things down if they got out of their own private bubble. They started actively planning time with other people. This is how they found themselves at dinner with Vicki and Bob on a Friday night.

"Well, the cabin sounds great," Vicki said. Turning to Bob, she added, "Wouldn't it be great if we could get a weekend away?"

"I'm sure that my cousins wouldn't mind if you two wanted to use the cabin! It doesn't seem to be getting a lot of use, from the state that we found it in when we got there." Paige gave Emily a confused look. Emily had put her hand on Paige's thigh when Paige started making the offer, as if to keep her from saying the wrong thing.

Emily spoke up, "When you're ready, of course." Emily knew that Vicki and Bob cared for each other, but they hadn't been together that long. She and Paige had been immersed in each other: swimming together, living together, spending holidays together, and meeting each other's family and friends. She didn't want Vicki and Bob to think that they had to rush things to match Paige and Emily's timeline. Emily wanted both of them to be as confident and content about the next step as she and Paige were.

Emily grabbed Paige's hand on top of the table as a visual indication of the connection that she was about to discuss. "Paige and I knew that we loved each other long before we decided to take that step. We both knew that it was coming, but we waited until it felt right to both of us. When the time was right, we both knew that it was right. So, just saying, the cabin's going to be there, right Paige? You guys don't have to rush."

"Relationship advice from Dr. Em!" Paige gave Emily a kiss, to show how proud she was of her good advice.

"Right," Bob said, "We wouldn't want to come back chainsmoking!"

Vicki tilted her head and looked at him cross-eyed. "Robert, you know that I'm a swimmer! And, even if I weren't, smoking is just about the worst thing that I could do to my body!"

"I know, V! I was referring to Paige's cigarette analogy!"

"Ohhh!" Vicki replied, still not really getting it, but admiring the way that her boyfriend's mind worked.

After dinner, they headed over to catch the "4Ever Deen Hunger Games Marathon" at the Film Society. The society was running the movies on continuous loop from Friday night through Saturday afternoon for $10, come and go when you please. The two couples decided to hang out and watch for as long as they could take it. They walked in during the Jabberjays scene from _Catching Fire._ Vicki, seated between Emily and Bob, turned out to be quite the film geek, to everyone's surprise, and she supplied behind the scenes commentary and technical insight into the special effects. Bob was rather impressed.

Paige was trying her best to get into the marathon, but she was distracted. She and Emily hasn't had their cheat night this week, and Paige's body was missing Emily's. After a while, her hand found its way onto Emily's thigh, where it began rubbing circles with slightly increasing intensity. Emily looked over at her with a smile; a no-nonsense, shut-it-down smile. So, Paige put her hand back into her lap. She couldn't stop her foot from slipping out of its shoe and working its way up and down Emily's calf muscle. Emily tried to placate her girlfriend with a quick kiss on the cheek and a whispered "Later!" in her ear. She cocked her head towards Vicki and Bob to remind Paige that the whole purpose of the night was to spend some time with other people so that they could cool down their hormones. Paige rolled her eyes and slumped down dejectedly in her chair. She stared down at her fingers as she idly tapped them against each other. Emily looked over at her, sitting there like a scolded puppy. She was so damned cute. Emily decided to throw her a bone, reaching around to the far side of Paige's face and turning her head so that she could give her an innocent kiss. That was the plan, anyway. Paige misread or deliberately disregarded Emily's signals and pulled her in to kiss her harder. Emily opened her mouth and allowed Paige to deepen the kiss, enjoying the taste of cappuccino on Paige's tongue. They soon lost awareness of everyone else around them, including the couple that was sitting right next to them.

Vicki and Bob, on the other hand, were very aware of Paige and Emily, and it wasn't long before they found themselves catching fire. Both couples quickly lost track of the time and of their surroundings. They couldn't tell you how much of the trilogy they had seen,nor did they notice how many people started down the row that they were sitting in, only to turn around when they realized that it was the make-out row. It's a safe bet that the backs of their heads showed up on someone's Instagram that night.

There was much buttoning and zipping up to be done by the time both couples decided that they needed to take their activities to a more private locale. There was an unspoken agreement to settle down and watch more of the movie before they got up and left, to give at least some pretense that they weren't going to do what each couple knew that the other was going to do. As they waited for a good point at which to leave, Paige whispered into Emily's ear, "I'd better give my cousins a call about the cabin!" gesturing with her head to how Vicki and Bob were entertaining themselves. Emily smacked her playfully in the chest, but she knew that Paige was right.

Later that evening, Vicki and Bob, without the other's knowledge, each texted Paige and Emily, thanking them for a great couples' night.

* * *

"I hope that we didn't corrupt them," Emily said, as she and Paige crawled into bed. Paige laughed, but Emily was actually worried. "I mean, I'd hate to think that we pushed them to do something that they're not ready for yet."

Paige rubbed Emily's shoulder to reassure her. "They're adults. They're not high school kids. I don't think that they're going to jump into anything. I mean, we didn't. We had some hot and heavy times, but we knew that it wasn't the right time. Vicki's got a level head. They'll be okay."

Emily rolled over to face Paige. "God, Paige, what were you thinking tonight?" she asked, wide-eyed, with an impish grin on her face, as she teased her finger up and down the center of Paige's torso. "I mean, we were in a public place, and we were there with another couple!"

"I was thinking, 'If she doesn't kiss me, I'm going to explode!'"

"Yeah?" Emily asked and Paige nodded. "Well, we can't have you exploding, can we?" Emily gave her a searing, passionate kiss. "Not yet, at least," she added, as her hand meandered down Paige's side.

Paige grabbed Emily's ass, pulling her in tight and rubbing circles on her cheeks. "I need you so much right now, Emily!"

Emily stared intensely into Paige's eyes as she reached under Paige's clothes and between her thighs. "Shit! You're so fucking wet, Paige!"

"I told you – I need you, Em!" Emily let out a moan. Paige's wetness – and the way that she had said "Em" – were driving her crazy. While her hand kept up its rhythm, she locked lips with Paige, feeling Paige's moans in her mouth. Soon, their pajamas were off, and Paige was shamelessly groping Emily's ass with one hand, pinching her own nipple with the other. Emily rolled Paige onto her back and straddled her pelvis. She reached up to let down her hair, knowing how much that turned Paige on. Paige didn't miss a moment of the spectacle: the rise of Emily's ribcage and the swell of her breasts as she reached her hands behind her head, the way she swished her head back and forth, her eyes closed, as she unleashed her locks, the cascading bounce of each of her curls as they landed on her shoulders and back, the look of pure lust in Emily's eyes as she returned her gaze to Paige. Paige was biting her lip and looking up at Emily as if looking up at a vision of angels. She reached both hands to Emily's bosom, and Emily threw her head back and started rocking herself forward and back atop Paige, moaning in ecstasy. Just that movement was stimulating Paige, but Emily kicked it up a notch, reaching behind herself and adding her fingers to the mix. It was a sensation that Paige had never experienced or imagined, and it caused her to squirm uncontrollably. Her grip on Emily's breasts became painfully tight, and Emily screamed out, "Yes!" as she plunged deeper into Paige.

As wave after wave of pleasure crashed upon Paige, she did her best to keep her eyes open. The view of Emily coming undone was getting Paige off almost as much as Emily's movements on top of her and inside her. She grabbed Emily's hips, pulling her body down more forcefully on top of her and increasing the pace of her movements back and forth on Paige's pelvis. Emily lost control. She gripped both of Paige's wrists, holding on for dear life as her abdominals tightened and she came, moaning and screaming. Paige, still needing release, put her hands around Emily's back and pulled her down on top of her, holding her while she recovered. As Emily's breath started to even out, she leaned back from Paige a little and gave her an apologetic pout. Paige brushed the hair away from Emily's face and gave her a half-smile to let her know that it was okay.

Emily moved onto her side, with Paige's arm around her. She started kissing the side of Paige's neck and sucking on her earlobe. Her hand was running the loop around Paige's breasts and up and down from her ribcage to her navel. Paige was pulling Emily in closer, savoring the feel of her girlfriend's soft, warm skin. Emily's fingers finally wandered down where Paige needed them, slipping easily inside her. Emily's mouth moved down to Paige's nipples. The smell of Emily's shampoo, as her hair teased up and down under Paige's nose, stoked memories of the first time they had spent the night in bed together, the first time that Paige had been the one whom Emily came running to, the first time that she had experienced the feeling of being Emily's rock. A thought came back to her that she hadn't been able to admit to herself at the time, and that she still couldn't admit to Emily. But the thought rang out in her mind, louder and clearer than it ever had before.

_I'm going to marry this girl someday._


	21. Present, Meet Future

Emily received a text and called out to Paige. "Gloria says that they're leaving now! They should be here in about a half hour!"

When Emily contacted the Fred and Gloria Herndon, the couple whom she met on theChicago-leg of her flight home for Christmas, to make arrangements to come out for a visit, Gloria insisted that she and her husband would drive down to Stanford to pick them up. Emily protested that it didn't make sense for them to make the one-hour round trip to pick them up - and have to make it again to take her and Paige back to campus. Gloria assured her that it was no problem. She and Fred enjoyed driving, and they liked having the time to talk to each other on long car trips. "There's just one thing. Fred doesn't see too well at night. If you can, we'd love to have you stay the night, and we can take you back Sunday morning. If not, we'll drop you off on Saturday night, and I can drive Fred home." Emily and Paige didn't want to impose, but they had Sunday morning free, and it seemed to Emily that Fred and Gloria enjoyed having company, with their children and grandchildren so far from home so they agreed.

And so it was that, early on a Saturday morning, Emily and Paige found themselves piling into the back of the Herndons' Buick as Fred loaded their luggage into the trunk. The drive to Los Altos was scenic, and, true to form, Fred pointed out landmarks all along the way.

They pulled up to a modest looking single-level house with a well-tended lawn and a pick-up truck in the driveway. Gloria ushered them inside to the smell of baking. The house looked comfortable; the kind of place where one didn't have to worry about where not to sit or what not to touch. Gloria put on some coffee while Fred took them up to see the room where they would be staying. "We didn't want to make assumptions about your sleeping arrangements," he explained, "so we decided that we'd put you in the boys' old room. There are two beds in there; we figure you two can work it out from there." Emily and Paige grinned at each other and then at Fred. He left them to get freshened up, saying that he and Gloria would be down in the family room.

* * *

The girls came down to a setting of coffee, coffee cakes, biscuits, cinnamon rolls, sticky buns, and cheese. "Gloria made everything," Fred explained, "except the cheese."

"I feel a little like Hansel and Gretel," Paige said, without thinking the story through.

"Well, the oven's big enough to shove her inside, but let's hope it doesn't come to that!"

They engaged in the usual small talk about majors, grades, and swimming. Gloria told them about their children and grandchildren, with plenty of pictures handy to put faces to the names. When the conversation died down, Gloria said, "So, Paige. Emily's told us how you two got together." Paige's eyes widened for a moment, wondering just how much Emily had told them. "Now, we'd like to hear your side of the story!"

Paige looked over to Emily. "What did you tell them?"

"No, no!" Fred laughed, "Go on! You tell us your side of the story, and we'll see how well your tales line up!"

"Well, let's see. I was attracted to Emily from the start – I mean, who wouldn't be? We were both dating other people at the time. I had a guy back in P-A, and she had a girl. Neither one of our exes made sense for us, and – I don't know. I guess I just got lucky, I guess."

"Well, I guess your story checks out," Fred laughed.

"Only Emily told us that _she_ was the lucky one!" Gloria added with a wink towards Emily.

"I want to know how you two got together," Emily announced.

"Oh, that's a long story!" Gloria replied.

"We've got time," Paige said, and Fred jogged out of the room. Emily and Paige were staring at Gloria with wide smiles plastered on their faces, like s kindergarten class at story time.

Gloria explained that, as a girl, she had always wanted to learn how to fly. When she was 19, she got engaged to her high school sweetheart, and she realized that, once she got married, she wouldn't be able to fly, so she went to a flying school to sign up for lessons. Fred came running back into the room with a picture that showed a much younger Fred and Gloria outside a hangar, posing by the side of a plane.

"That dashing young man was my flight instructor," Gloria explained.

"Your family didn't think so! They said that I was too old," Fred filled in under his breath.

Gloria continued, "Well, I guess you could say that I didn't really have a knack for flying. So, one day, Fred got fed up and asked me, 'Why are you even taking lessons?' and I told him that I always wanted to learn, and that this was my last chance, because I was getting married."

"I told her that it was _stupid_!" Fred shouted. Gloria laughed at the memory. The girls could tell that they had told this story a few times before. They smiled to each other at how much Fred and Gloria enjoyed telling it.

"So, I looked him straight in the eye, and I told him, 'Now, listen here! There's no reason that I can't learn to fly if I want to!' And he said, 'I agree! And it's stupid that you would marry a man who won't let you fly once you're married!' And I thought, 'You know what? He's absolutely right!' So, in the end, I did learn how to fly, but I also learned that I really don't care much for flying. But it all worked out, because the lessons are what brought Fred and me together."

"She hated the class, but she loved the teacher!" Fred said, with unrestrained pride.

Gloria gave him a kiss. "And I always wondered whether the whole reason that I had the dream of flying all of my life was just so that I would meet Fred. Well, who knows? But I'm not complaining!" Emily walked over and gave them each a hug. Their story had her on the verge of tears.

Paige asked how long Fred had been flying, and he explained that he began flying with the Air Force in Vietnam in the early 70s. When he was discharged, he flew puddle jumpers all across the Southwest, supplementing his income by serving as an instructor pilot in a flight school that some of his buddies operated.

A light went on in Emily's head. "Oh – so that's how you knew all of the landmarks on the way to Chicago. I had no idea that you were a pilot!"

"I was," Fred affirmed. "I had to retire a few years ago. I still love the cockpit, but, you know. This one," elbowing his wife, "prefers wheels to wings."

"I'd just like to be around to see my grandchildren grow up, thank you," Gloria laughed, giving Fred another kiss.

"Well, it sounds like an exciting career," Paige offered.

"Oh, no!" Gloria said. "You don't say that to a pilot!"

"If it's exciting," Fred started, and Gloria joined him for the conclusion, "it means you're doing something wrong."

"I can't count the number of times I've heard that line," she said.

After they cleared the coffee away, Fred led their guests outside to show off his garden. "We bought this place from a fellow who didn't care too much about the soil. He let all these trees get in rough shape. That's been a pet project for me, now that I'm retired. It's amazing how resilient nature can be."

As they walked the grounds, he pointed out various patches, telling the story of different wild and domestic animals that he'd encountered there. "Once the peaches started coming in, so did the deer. I could've put up a barrier to keep them out, but Gloria and I weren't going to eat all that fruit. I found out that the deer don't care if a peach has a few brown spots on it, so, now, I just go through the trees and put the rotten ones on the ground, where it's easy for the deer to reach. That way, they leave the good ones for us!"

Paige noticed that she was holding Emily's hand. She realized that she was just enraptured with this couple's life. She was actually getting into a story about deer and peaches, but what it was really about was the love that Fred and Gloria had for each other, and how they had their own separate interests and pursuits, but that their lives were still intimately connected for going on 40 years. She was looking into their present as though glimpsing at her future with Emily.

Emily gave her hand a squeeze and smiled over at her. It was as if Emily were thinking the very same thoughts. Or maybe she just noticed that Paige was somewhere else and wanted to bring her back into the here and now so that she wouldn't offend their hosts.

* * *

When they settled into bed that evening, Paige was holding Emily tighter than usual. Emily looked back to see Paige with that goofy grin on her face. "They really are a great couple, aren't they?" Emily asked.

"Right? I love the fact that they're made for each other. It's as if the Universe went out of its way to bring them together, and they went out of their way to _stay_ together for all these years."

"And they really love each other, after all this time." Emily smiled and laid her hand on Paige's cheek. "You're such a romantic!" Paige just held her tighter and smiled that much wider.

They woke Sunday morning to the smell of coffee. Once they collected themselves, they followed the smell to the kitchen where they found the table already set and spread with an impressive assortment of breakfast meats, pancakes, waffles, and pastries. Fred was smiling in front of the stove, brandishing a spatula. "I'm your short-order cook for the day. How would you like your eggs?"

After Paige and Emily ate and helped get the kitchen cleaned up, Fred offered to take them for a tour of the hangar where he kept his plane. Gloria wasn't up for "the Aviation Heads," as she called the group of pilots, mechanics, and airplane junkies who hung around the hangars on Sundays. Emily decided to stay back, so that Gloria wouldn't be alone.

* * *

Gloria pulled out an old photo album, joking to Emily, "Now, this is how we did things before facebook!" She added, "Of course, I have to be on facebook now, to keep up with the photos of my grandkids!" Emily didn't know why she hadn't thought of it before, but she whipped out her phone, looked up Gloria and Fred, and sent them friend requests.

Gloria showed her pictures of their wedding, their early days together, their kids, their vacations, and their grandkids. Four or five albums later, she asked, without easing into the new topic, "You really love Paige, don't you?"

"I do," Emily confirmed.

"I can tell. I could always tell with my kids, when it was the real thing or when it was just something that would pass. Of course, when you're in the middle of it, it always seems like the real thing. Parents learn not to say anything even when we know that it's just infatuation."

Emily smiled. Gloria continued. "Do you want to marry her someday?"

Emily began fidgeting with her hands, staring at them in her lap. "I mean, we haven't even known each other for six months, so…" She looked over at Gloria who was giving her a knowing half smile. _Oh, fuck_ , Emily thought. _This is crazy._ She decided to tell the truth. Smiling shyly, she barely heard herself say, "Yes, Gloria. I do see the two of us getting married someday." She could feel the tears starting, and she inhaled sharply through her nose. Gloria handed her a tissue.

Gloria reached over and hugged her. "Don't worry. I won't say anything." Emily was relieved to hear that. "Promise me one thing, though," Gloria added, still holding onto Emily, but backing away so that they could see each other's eyes. Emily nodded, a bit fearful at what she was about to agree to. "Promise me that you won't wait _too_ long. Fred and I want to be there!"

Emily pulled Gloria back into the hug. "Of course, you will!" She pulled away, still holding Gloria's hands. "You know, Paige and I were talking last night. We really want what you and Fred have. I mean, we never really talked about marriage, but, just… just seeing you guys and the way you love each other – the way you _have_ loved each other – it's just…"

Gloria put her arm around her and rubbed her shoulder. "You and Paige will get there. I can tell. And, one day, some young couple is going to look at you the way that you look at me and Fred."

Emily sat up and squared herself in front of Gloria. "How did you know that Fred was the one?"

"Oh, I'm not sure I can answer that," Gloria said. "If I told you, you'd probably expect it to happen the same way for you and Paige, and it's not so simple." Emily nodded in understanding. "Besides," Gloria continued, "you already know that Paige is the one, don't you?" Emily nodded again. "I'm not saying that you two are going to get married this year, or even this decade. You don't even have to talk about it yet. Think of it like this: Have you ever taken a long car trip, where you know where you're going, but you don't know exactly how to get there? But, maybe you know how to get to the general area, or, at least, you know how to get out of your neighborhood. So, it might be a few miles, or a hundred miles, or a few hundred miles before you have to get out the map – or the GPS, I guess – and get serious about where to turn and when. All I'm trying to say is, just keep going. I think that you both know what the destination is. And you both know how to navigate in the neighborhood that you're in right now. Someday, you'll get to that point where you need more directions to get where you're going, and you'll both know that, too. For now, just enjoy the trip. Don't worry about how long it will take. The trip itself can be just as much fun as the destination."

Emily gave Gloria another hug and thanked her sincerely. "Could you excuse me for a second?" she asked, needing to go off and compose herself. Gloria nodded and handed Emily the box of tissues. Emily headed back to the room where she and Paige were staying, pulled out her phone, and closed the door.

* * *

Fred and Paige were on their way back from the hangars when Paige's phone buzzed. She gasped when she read the text.

**Emily: Wait till I get you home. I want you so much right now.**

Fred looked over, concerned by Paige's reaction. "Everything okay?"

"Oh, yeah," Paige tried to think on her feet. "Just got caught off guard by some unexpected good news."

* * *


	22. Day of Service

Emily was in her element, in a wide, expansive kitchen with four oversized commercial ovens. It was the Sunday before Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, and she was directing her fellow freshman swimmers as they baked, wrapped, and boxed up batch after batch of cookies. The freshmen were going to spend their Day of Service at the Lytton Gardens Senior Center, and Emily had volunteered to take care of the baked goods. She had made arrangements to use the kitchen in the Pi Psi house.

Paige was beaming with pride at her girlfriend. Emily had a presence about her that dripped authority. Most of their teammates had been captains of their high school swim teams, and they were used to being the ones in charge, but Emily stood out among them as a leader of leaders. It only helped, for this project, that she was so at home in the kitchen.

Emily kept the kitchen hopping, but the mood was light. The team was really looking forward to spending the day with the assisted-living residents, and they all enjoyed each other's company. As much as they were doing it for the residents, it was a great bonding and team-building exercise.

* * *

"You were amazing today," Paige told Emily as she held her in bed that night.

"I know my way around a kitchen!"

"But it wasn't just that. You had everybody organized and working together, like a well-oiled machine."

"Credit Wayne Fields, I guess! Mom taught me all about baking, and Dad taught me all about leading a team."

"Do you think you'd like to be captain of the swim team?"

"Why?" Emily asked playfully, turning toward Paige, "Am I going to have to fight you for it?"

"There would be no competition! You're a born leader!"

"And so are you! You're a motivator. I can organize people, but you get them pumped up to compete."

"Co-captains!" Paige suggested.

"That sounds right!"

Paige thought back to baking Christmas cookies for their visit to the Shady Days home in Rosewood. She hoped that this visit wouldn't end up like that one, with Emily roping her into singing for the residents.

* * *

On Monday, they carpooled over to the facility, wearing shirts with Dr. King's image on the front and "Stanford Swimming/Day of Service" on the back. After they checked in at the front desk, the freshmen formed an assembly line, hauling boxes from the Vicki's trunk and back seat to a room off the main kitchen that would serve as their staging area. They went around in groups of two to as many residents as had indicated that they wanted visitors. Emily pointed to a name on the list and grabbed Paige by the arm. "Let's visit this one!"

They knocked on the door and were greeted by an elderly woman propped up in a chair watching game shows. " _Magandang umaga Po_!" Emily said to her, and the woman's face brightened. Emily reached out and took the resident's hand, which she raised to her own forehead. Mrs. Tamayo and Emily exchanged a few sentences in a language that Paige couldn't quite determine, sprinkling in the occasional English word in as well. Emily pointed to her and said some words ending in "Paige," to which the resident replied, "Oh, maganda!" and reached out for a hug. Paige greeted her, and the conversation switched to English after that.

The three ladies talked for a good half hour, with the TV providing background noise. Mrs. Tamayo told of growing up in the Philippines, being raised by her aunt from the time that she was 8, when her parents moved to the US. It had been another five years before she was able to join them in California. Emily told Mrs. Tamayo about her Filipino grandmother, sharing some of the stories that her grandmother had told her about growing up in the Philippines before she married a GI and got an opportunity to see the world.

Mrs. Tamayo asked Paige whether or not she had ever been to the Philippines. Paige had never been out of the country. She told her that she hadn't been to the Philippines, but that it sounded like a place that she would like to visit. "Well, I'm sure that Emily will take you there, someday," she said, and then she winked at Emily and added, "Pulut-gata!" Emily gave her a playful swipe across the shoulder and smiled in embarrassment.

As they were about to leave, Mrs. Tamayo gathered them close and said that she wanted to say a blessing over them. She spoke more words that Paige couldn't understand but which brought tears to Emily's eyes. "Salamat Po," Emily said, as she hugged her good-by and gave her a kiss to the cheek.

When they got into the hall, Paige gave Emily a moment to collect herself before she asked, "Pulut gata?" trying her best to remember the syllables.

"It's sort of like 'honeymoon.'" Emily smiled nervously.

Paige was shocked. "You told her that we were together?"

"She asked me whether or not you were my girlfriend. I said, 'Yes, this is my girlfriend, Paige.'"

"Yeah, I picked up on the word Paige." Paige's tone was sarcastic but light.

"And she said, 'Maganda.' 'Beautiful.'"

"Aww… So, how did she know that we were together?"

" _Paige._ We're a very perceptive people. My Mom always used to tell me, 'You can never put anything over on a Filipina!' So, be careful!"

"What did she say to get you all worked up?"

"She said she wished for us to be as happy and in love as she and her husband, and may we never know what it means to be alone. I don't know. It was more beautiful the way that she said it."

The next rooms that they visited were far less emotional, although just as rewarding. Before the team left, they spent some time in the community room where many of the residents, some with their families, were assembled. The team had brought plenty of Cardinal trinkets to share with the grandchildren and even "coached" some of them, guiding their arms through the various strokes and teaching them some of the Stanford fight songs and cheers. They posed for countless pictures - even signing autographs, no doubt earning several new fans and some aspiring recruits of Stanford Swimming.

The team was abuzz with excitement on the way back to campus. Each one had stories to tell, and they were all looking forward to doing it again the following year – or even sooner.

* * *

Back in their room, Paige mentioned something that she noticed about Emily. "You have a real connection with – what's the word we're supposed to use and not be offensive? – 'elderly' people."

"You think so?"

"I mean, it's as if they're cosmically attracted to you. The home in Rosewood, Lytton Gardens, the Herndons…"

"Yep, the elderly love me!"

"It's mutual."

"Well, I just enjoy hearing about their lives. They've had so many experiences, but they're at an age where they don't have a lot of people to listen to them. People our age are just so interested in themselves, you know? Everything we do has to be posted for the world to see. But, their generation, they're like a storehouse of treasure that's not going to be around much longer. And when they're gone, nobody's going to be left who can still tell their stories."

Paige couldn't help pulling Emily in for a kiss. "You're kind of amazing, you know that? I love it when you get all philosophical."

* * *

Paige texted Emily that she had a surprise to show her when she got back to the dorm. Emily had a pretty good idea what it was about. Paige had convinced her father that she needed a car to get around in while she was at Stanford, since she was going to be living there more months out of the year than at home over the next four years. He agreed to sell her old car and add a little something to whatever it fetched. Paige had been geeking out on car sites ever since.

When Emily opened the door, she tried her best to be excited for Paige. Paige was off the chain, and Emily didn't want to bring her down. Paige had draped a pillowcase over the screen of her laptop for the unveiling.

"Ta da!" she beamed as she whipped off the covering, gesturing toward the screen like a game show spokesmodel.

"Oh, HELL no!" Emily yelled. "No way. Nope. Not in a million years!"

Paige was prepared for Emily to react negatively when she saw that her vehicle of choice was not so much a car but a motorcycle – a used, 2014 Kawasaki Vulcan 1700. "Okay, but hear me out!" she pleaded. "Just for cruising around campus and getting into town, it'll be fine! And I can get a lot more motorcycle for the money than car. Imagine it, Emily: me on my bike, you behind me, holding on as we lean through a turn, the scent of leather in the air, the air that's whipping through your hair – under a helmet, of course!"

Emily did get caught up in the imagery for a second, but she was quickly back to herself. "First of all, Paige, there is no safe way to ride a motorcycle. 'Motorcycle safety' is an oxymoron. Second, it's not practical. We'll still end up borrowing a car if we need to get somewhere, so what's the point of having a motorcycle? And, finally, it's not going to happen, because, 3) Coach Meehan is never going to go for it, and 4) Nick McCullers is never going to go for it!"

Paige hung her head. "I know, I know."

"Is this that old sitcom trick, where you show your dad something outrageous to make the car that you really want seem not so bad?"

"No, I don't even have a car in mind yet. I just wanted to dream for a second."

"Aw – it's a beautiful dream, Paige. I didn't mean to squash it. And you almost had me with that image of the two of us riding together!"

"That would be _awesome_ , wouldn't it?"

"It sure would. But I can't even think about that, right now. You know we've got an intense week ahead of us, with this Arizona trip coming up!"

"Tell me about it. I figure we'll get up at 5:00 tomorrow and get some sprints in on the track before we hit the pool?"

"Yeah. That sounds good. What's your workload like for tomorrow?"

"I think that I've covered everything that I _can_ cover right now."

"Same here. What do you say we do some actual car shopping before dinner?"

Emily pulled her chair up to Paige's desk and the search was on. "Can I at least take a test drive on a motorcycle?" Paige said, not really getting into the car search as she still fixated on the Kawasaki.

"Do you even have a motorcycle license?"

"I can get one!"

Emily sighed. "Oh, God! I don't know why I'm telling you this."

"What?"

"My Dad's got a bike. An '02 Indian."

"No way! Really?"

"Really. Army thing. You know, men and boys love to play with their toys. God, he loves that bike. My Mom and I can't stand it. When you come out to Rosewood this summer, be sure to tell my Dad that you were looking at getting a motorcycle. He'll definitely take you out to the track. He'll probably buy you a helmet and leathers. He'll probably adopt you. And you'd be his favorite daughter."

Paige leaned in and kissed Emily, saying into her lips, "Then I am _definitely_ " - finishing one kiss and starting in on another - "coming out to Rosewood this summer!"

"Great," Emily said between kisses, "Not only am I a motorcycle orphan, I'll be a motorcycle widow, too!"

"Admit it, Fields, you'd kill to see me in leathers and a helmet!"

"Mmmm – You know it, McCullers!" Emily snuck her hands underneath Paige's shirt. "But I'd rather see you _out_ of them."

"Yeah?" Paige teased, as Emily stroked her chest, "We can make that happen, too." She was losing her breath under the assault of Emily's hands.

"We're supposed to be going to dinner," Emily reminded her, showing no signs of stopping.

"I'm not really hungry, are you?"

"I am," Emily replied, lowering her hands to the inseam of Paige's jeans, "but not for anything that they have at the caf!"

* * *

"Paige!" As soon as Emily unlocked the door, she ran over to Paige and gave her a hug. "Thank God you're all right!"

"Of course, I'm all right! Why do you sound so worried?"

"I've been calling and texting and e-mailing you all day. How come you never got back to me?"

"Oh, would you look at that? My phone died! Sorry, I didn't notice."

"And you haven't checked your e-mail?"

"You know that the WiFi's been out in this building all since last night."

"Oh. Okay. Sorry, I just got scared. I thought that you were dead, or passed out, or... something worse."

"Something worse than dead?"

"Yeah. I thought, I don't know. You needed space, or something."

"Em," Paige said, sweetly, giving her girlfriend a kiss, "That doesn't really sound like me, does it?"

"No, I guess not. Not in the least."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize to any Tagalog speakers for my Google translations! Feel free to comment or PM with any linguistic or cultural corrections, and I'll edit the chapter. Thanks!


	23. Swimming in the Desert

It had been a rough week, to put it mildly. Although the team had been practicing all month after they got back from Christmas break, everything was kicked up a notch this week, with their first meets of the year coming up on the weekend. It wasn't just the training; the team had to be more circumspect about their diet and rest as well. And because they were flying out to Arizona, they had to make arrangements to keep up with their classwork and assignments for the long weekend away.

As freshmen, Paige and Emily were holding their own. They were more than living up to the expectations placed on them, and, while they were by no means the stars of the team, they were solid contributors in their events and had earned their share of first-place finishes in what had been, so far, a highly successful season for Stanford.

They were good for each other. In high school, they were each other's motivation as cross-state rivals. Now that they were on the same team, training together, pushing each other, dreaming together, there was a synergistic effect. Of course, the better training facilities and Stanford's excellent coaching staff had a great deal to do with their success as well.

It was quite a logistical undertaking for the team managers: Getting everybody booked, arranging coaches from the airport in Arizona and between Arizona State and University of Arizona, ensuring that all of the equipment made it. It required the team to hold strictly to their schedules.

Everyone was abuzz as they boarded the team bus to take them to San Francisco International for their flight out. The gaggle of teammates, in their red and white warm-ups, surrounded by coaches and managers, turned a few heads at at the airport.

Flying with the team was different. There was so much going on with her teammates that Paige didn't get impatient and grouchy the way that she usually did when she had to endure the airport experience. For Emily's part, now that Paige was with her, she no longer had to conceal her fear of flying on team flights. She knew that she could discreetly lean on Paige for comfort. Actually, she was becoming more and more comfortable with flying, but she knew how good it made Paige feel to be her protector, and, if she were honest with herself, she knew that it made her feel good to have Paige there to lean on.

Emily and Paige fell asleep with Emily's head on Paige's shoulder and Paige's head on Emily's head, sharing the same pair of earbuds. Thanks to the plane's free wifi, the picture that Vicki took already had a couple dozen likes by the time the plane landed in Tucson. She hashtagged it "Paily," the name that she and her teammates had chosen over "Pemily" and "McFields."

* * *

Emily and Paige had both been recruited by Arizona State, so they somewhat familiar with the campus and the facilities. This trip would be different, though. They wouldn't have time to see much beyond the bus, the training table, the locker rooms, and the pool.

Although the Arizona women's team was ranked a bit lower than Stanford's, Coach Meehan and the captains drilled into the team the fact that they couldn't take this meet lightly. Arizona was on fire, having won all of their previous head-to-head meets, although not against the caliber of competition that Stanford had gone up against. The team couldn't wait to get into the back into the water against live competition after not having competed since Thanksgiving. The fact that they were going against a lesser-ranked team worked in their favor. With the time off from competition, the demands of travel plus the minor time change, and, perhaps, a bit of overconfidence working against them, they were rather sloppy in the water. No records were broken or personal bests set, but they escaped with a comfortable victory – and a bit of humility.

* * *

The two-hour bus ride to Tempe for Saturday's meet against Arizona State was a quiet one. The team was exhausted, and, although they were victorious, they had nothing to brag about. Emily had a grip on Paige's bicep. She knew that Paige wouldn't want to talk, but she also knew that it would only make things worse for Paige to wallow over her performance. She had nothing to be ashamed of, and she and Emily were both instrumental in the team's win, but Emily knew that Paige was beating herself up internally for not having done her best. She also knew that Paige wasn't ready to hear that she had no reason to beat herself up. So, she just held onto her, hoping that a touch could do what words could not. Feeling Paige relax ever so slightly, Emily risked taking her hand, as well.

In her head, Paige was going over every mental error, every missed stroke, every sluggish turn. She wasn't critiquing them so that she could improve her performance; she was chastising herself for being such a screw up. She felt Emily's hand encircling her bicep, and she prepared herself to refute whatever words of comfort Emily was about to offer. But Emily didn't say anything. She just sat there with Paige, holding onto her arm. Eventually, she grabbed Paige's hand as well. Had she done so even thirty seconds earlier, Paige would have jerked her hand away, but Emily's hand on her bicep had softened Paige in a way that she hadn't expected. She only knew that she felt grateful and loved and extremely fortunate. It wasn't just that Emily loved her, but that Emily _got_ her. When Paige wasn't herself, Emily knew what she needed and was willing to be who Paige needed her to be - even if that wasn't what Emily wanted right then.

Paige still wasn't ready to talk, but she squeezed Emily's hand lightly in gratitude, and Emily dared to rest her head against Paige's shoulder. Paige reached around with her left hand and cupped Emily's cheek, kissing her gently on the top of her head.

They sat in silence for most of the trip until Paige spoke up. "So, what? You're not going to talk to me at all tonight, Fields?" she said, and Emily smacked her playfully in the shoulder. "Thank you," Paige whispered. "I love you."

Emily kissed Paige's neck. "I love you, too."

* * *

By the time the bus got to the hotel and they had slogged down some dinner, the whole team was thoroughly exhausted. Paige and Emily had to wait until bed check before they could switch rooms to be together. They were so tired that they actually could've fallen asleep on their own, in the rooms that they had been assigned. Emily had other ideas, though. After Paige showed up and settled in behind her, Emily whispered her name. Paige grunted groggily in response, and Emily proceeded. "Have you ever had sex in Arizona?"

Paige liked where this was headed. She was exhausted and emotionally drained, but she decided to play along. "Emily, you know precisely where I have and haven't had sex. You were there every time, remember?"

Paige was talking at a normal volume, although her voice was husky with sleepiness. Emily was still whispering.

"I know, but I was thinking. Don't you think that we should have sex, so that we can cross Arizona off of our list?"

"We have a list?"

"Let's start one!" Emily shrugged.

"Fine. Sure. Let's cross Arizona off the list."

"We have to be quiet," Emily whispered.

"Are you drunk right now?" Paige wondered out loud. "Did Jana give you a flask before I got here?"

"No, I'm totally serious! These walls are paper thin! We _have_ to be quiet," Emily whispered sternly.

"Don't worry, Emily," Paige reasoned, "everyone else is already asleep."

Emily lightly poked Paige in the chest with each of her next whispered words: "You can't make me scream."

She had just pushed the "LAUNCH" button. All of a sudden, this stopped being just a game for Paige. "Well, I can't promise that, Em!" she growled into Emily's ear, and then bit down on it. Emily squealed and immediately clapped her hand over her mouth, gasping, wide-eyed, at her indiscretion.

Emily rolled over to face Paige and pulled Paige's T-Shirt over her head. She started tweaking Paige's left nipple. "Why aren't you wearing your heart? I've never fucked you without your heart!" She rubbed Paige's breast as if consoling it over the loss of a best friend.

"I don't usually fly with it," Paige answered, "You remember Thanksgiving."

Emily kissed the nipple and sucked on it. Paige pulled down Emily's boxers and pulled Emily astride her thigh, gently rubbing her bare bottom. Emily allowed just enough space between her mouth and Paige's breast for a moan to get through. In one motion, Paige pulled Emily on top of her, then rolled over so that Emily was on the bottom. She retained her knee between Emily's thighs as she planted wet kisses across her neck and fondled her breasts through her shirt. Emily was reaching up and tweaking Paige's breasts at the same time. She moved her hands down to Paige's ass, handling it roughly as she pressed Paige's thigh deeper into her center. Paige paused for a moment to pull down her shorts. Emily seized the opportunity to test Paige's readiness and, feeling her wetness, she placed one hand on Paige's abs and the other inside her, as Paige resumed the pressure of her thigh on Emily. Then, Paige had an idea. She rolled over onto her back and slid Emily up to her face. Emily took the cue and moved to a sitting position, her bent knees on either side of Paige's head. Paige was in ecstasy, lapping hungrily at Emily's essence. Emily was biting on her hand in an attempt to stifle the screams that Paige was inducing. She forced her mouth closed, somewhat muffling the garbled noises that her throat was producing, and fisted her hands into Paige's hair, hanging on for dear life. Paige's neck was getting sore, so she curled her powerful shoulders up off the bed, to give it some more support. She had always been a strong finisher in the pool, able to ignore the pain and tiredness and summon enough energy to power through to the end. Emily had seen that often in Paige's races, and, had she been able to think about anything other than the jolts of electricity that were firing from her core straight to her brain, she would have felt appreciation for the way that she was benefiting from this inner strength of Paige's. All that she could feel, though, was an intense heat in her core and a tightening of her stomach. And the need to keep her mouth shut.

"Okay. Your turn!" Emily whispered, once she came back to herself. "You have to cum in Arizona, too."

Paige giggled. She couldn't believe this campaign that Emily was on. "You have to be quick," she told Emily. "I have to get _some_ sleep tonight!"Emily slid down Paige's body, and Paige got very serious again. Emily knew what she was doing. It hadn't taken her long to learn her lover. If Paige wanted it quick, she would get it quick.

Emily tickled up and down Paige's sides as she worked her tongue in and out of her folds, pausing only to remind Paige that she had to be quiet. After the third interruption, Paige pulled the pillow from below her head and used it as a silencer. Emily was able to continue uninterrupted. She wouldn't have been able to hear much, anyway, as Paige's thighs clamped tight around her head. It didn't take long for Paige to lose herself. She banged her head against the headboard as she came, earning a sharp look from Emily. Paige missed the rebuke, though, her eyes still hidden underneath the pillow.

"Emily," she said, breathless, "what do you say we _drive_ back to PA this summer - see how many states we can hit?"

* * *

It was Arizona State's great misfortune to be the team that Stanford faced after their match with Arizona. Stanford was fired up, to say the least. They had something to prove – to themselves, to their coaches, and to the ranking committee. And Paige couldn't help thinking that there was something to those rumors about the benefits of getting laid before competition. Although intense, it was the quietest orgasm that Paige had ever heard.

It ended up being a very lopsided competition against a very over-matched Arizona State team. Stanford's women left town on a high note, and the freshmen learned something about consistency.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N (A really long one…) So, I was really dreading having to write a "Paily on the bus" chapter, because theaugustrain nailed that theme in chapter 15 of her excellent but, sadly, unfinished fic, "Your Hand in Mine." It's an amazing story, and I would recommend it unequivocally, except that it's incomplete and, since the last update was in July, 2011, it doesn't appear that it will ever be completed. :(
> 
> I thought that I could get away without having to write a bus trip in this chapter, because the actual Stanford team is traveling to Tucson this weekend (and I'm assuming that they're flying), but then I saw that they were going to be in Tempe for the second meet. Trust me, the bus scenes in "Your Hand in Mine" (heading up to and back from Pitt) are much, much better, and well worth the read, even if you only read that one chapter.
> 
> By the way, that same chapter and the 15th chapter of another excellent but, sadly, unfinished Paily fic, "Anchor Your Heart to Mine" by Overkill_Max, are the reason that I started this story. Both chapters include passages where Emily is in Paige's bed platonically. I wanted to give my take on that theme, although my version is not worthy comparison with theirs. If you don't have a need for closure, you should look up those fics. It's kind of heartbreaking for me to read them, though, because they both cut off before Paige and Emily get together. ("Your Hand in Mine" cuts off before Paige comes to terms with her sexuality.) Actually, maybe just read the 15th chapters themselves. I don't think that you'll be disappointed.
> 
> Finally, I wrote this a few days before Stanford's weekend in Arizona, and I'm not psychic, so I apologize to any teams involved if my account isn't accurate. AU, remember...
> 
> Anyway, sorry for the long note, but I did want to share info on these well-written, well-developed fics in case anyone hasn't read them yet. They are both far above anything that I could ever hope to write, so, if you like this fic, you'll be head over heels for those.
> 
> (I promise to finish this one, though.)


	24. Spring Break!

"So, I was talking to Hanna."

"Oh, you were?" Paige, conscious of how fixated Hanna was with her nipple piercing, teasingly made a show of folding her arms across her breasts, and Emily playfully swatted them down.

"Yes. We were actually talking about getting together for Spring Break."

"Oh. So, my boobs didn't come up at all?"

"Disappointed?" Emily snarked, and Paige shrugged her shoulders. "Okay, yeah, your boobs did come up," Emily admitted. "But, mainly, we discussed Spring Break. We're not sure about Aria and Spence, because of their schools' schedules. We might only get a long weekend or a couple of days of overlap with them. But Hanna's definitely down. What do you think?"

For some reason, when Emily mentioned Spring Break with Hanna, Paige's mind, for the briefest of moments, flashed to an image of Hanna, seen from behind, in a white bikini cannonballing into a pool, holding her nose with one hand and pumping the other fist in the air. She shook the image off immediately and asked Emily where she and Hanna had talked about going.

"Probably somewhere in this part of the country - maybe San Diego or Havasu. We haven't decided. We just wanted to confirm the dates."

"Am I going to be the only date? Because it would be weird to be the only one included in things with you and your friends just because, you know. I'm the only significant other who comes with lady-parts."

"Oh, stop! I'm sure that some of the guys are coming, too, but I'll ask."

"Sounds good!" Paige replied. "I'm in!"

* * *

That night, as they were getting ready for bed, Paige told Emily that she had something to tell her.

"Ooh - sounds serious!" Emily's tone was light. Paige took both of her hands, to convey that it was, in fact, something serious.

"Earlier, when we were talking about Hanna and Spring Break, my mind just went off to an image of Hanna. In a bikini." She looked Emily in the eye, and continued, apologetically, "It was only for a split second. I don't even know why. I mean, it's not as though I – you know – have _those thoughts_ about Hanna." Emily nodded her head. "I guess," Paige went on, "when you asked me a while ago, around Christmas, whether or not I still thought about guys, and I said I didn't know, I guess this means that I'm only into girls."

Emily tilted her head toward the bed, indicating that they should sit down. They sat, still holding hands, Emily with one leg tucked under her. "Okay," she began. "First of all, thanks for telling me. I'm glad that you trust me enough to tell me truth."

Paige nodded and kept giving Emily a worried look.

"Second, I don't care where you are on the spectrum – bi, lesbian, straight." Paige quirked an eyebrow. "Okay, I guess we can rule out straight. Anyway, the only thing that matters is that you're with me. And, third, the fact that your mind went there doesn't make you one thing or another. Everybody has thoughts at one time or another. I mean, I _know_ that I'm not attracted to guys, but I can see a guy with a nice chest and my mind will go there." Emily leaned in, raising her eyebrow at Paige, to make sure that she was following all of this. Paige nodded, and Emily continued. "Paige, I know that you love me, and I'm not worried about this, okay?"

Paige let out a huge sigh of relief. "Okay."

"I don't want you to be worrying about it, either."

Emily pulled her in for a hug. As they released, Paige begged, "Em, I know that you tell Hanna everything, but _please_ don't tell her about this, okay? I don't need to hear all about this all through Spring Break!"

Emily got a wicked smile. "Ooh - I actually hadn't thought about it, but it would be worth it to see how she makes you squirm!"

* * *

Paige and Emily were getting excited for Spring Break, but they still had a ways to go - and a lot to do - before they got there. Midterm exams and the PAC-12 championships lay ahead of them in March. By the time they got through those, they would really be ready for a break.

When the decision was made to spend Spring Break in San Diego - Emily and Paige had, after all, already flown out to Pennsylvania twice this school year - Paige got serious about searching for a car. Emily had been looking forward to sharing in the search with Paige; not that she wanted or felt entitled to have input on Paige's choice (as long as it had four wheels, not two), but she wanted to share in the thrill of the hunt. Paige, though, went all black ops on her; determined to surprise Emily. Once she made her choice, she e-mailed the VIN to her father, and he made all of the arrangements.

* * *

As they headed to the dealership in Vicki's car, Emily asked Paige how things were going with her father. Paige sighed deeply as she thought it over. "Baby steps," she said at last. "We haven't lost any ground since Christmas - we can say 'I love you' when we talk on the phone, now. I just think that we need, you know, more one-on-one time."

"This summer?"

"For part of the summer, at least. I still want to get out to Rosewood for a couple of weeks."

"I mean, that would be great, but maybe the time with your dad is more important?"

"Yeah, maybe. You're important, too, Em. We don't really have time together when we're not _doing_ something." Emily raised her eyebrows. "Not like that... You know what I mean - we're training, or competing, or studying."

"Well, we wouldn't be doing _nothing_ in Rosewood. You wanted to volunteer with me at Rosewood High's swim camp, remember? Plus, we're going to be on Spring Break pretty soon, doing nothing."

"Are you trying to ditch me, Fields?"

"Of course not. I'm just saying."

"It'll be fine." Paige thought for a minute. "Unless you wanted to come home with me for part of the summer?"

"Would your dad be okay with that?"

"Of course he would." Paige looked over at her and winked. "Just as long as you don't wake him up late at night, screaming in ecstasy!"

Emily's hand abruptly clamped down on Paige's thigh. "Oh, God, Paige - if your dad ever heard the sounds that you make come out of me, I would seriously die of embarrassment!" Paige shot Emily a cocky grin. It faded when Emily added, "I'm not kidding, Paige: No sex in the McCullers house!"

A few minutes later, Emily spoke up again. "Paige?" Paige smiled in her direction. "This has been killing me for a long time, now. Knowing the way that you and your dad communicate, how did he handle it when you got your period?"

Paige tossed her head back in laughter. "How do you think?"

"Friendly neighbor lady? Pamphlet from the Department of Health? Sleepaway camp for pubescent girls?"

Paige shook her head, smiling. "Well, your first guess was the closest. The last guess, too, sort of. And, he did give me reading materials from the library, so I guess it was all of the above." Emily looked confused. "Pru. Pru's family got me through. I was basically living with them once I started," - Paige lowered her voice, indicating that it was her father's term - "'developing.'"

* * *

Paige handed the paperwork to a salesman, and he led them out to a back room where Paige signed her name a few times before the salesman took them out to a sky-blue 2014 Kia Soul. "Doesn't it just scream California - and Spring Break?" Paige gushed. Emily couldn't argue with her choice. Emily gave her a hug. "It's a beautiful car," she asserted. "Great choice!"

The salesman walked them through the functions on the remote control and helped them set up the bluetooth for Paige's phone.

Paige handed Emily the second set of keys. "You drive it back. I'll take Vicki's car."

"Oh, no!" Emily smiled. "No way I'm taking the first drive in your baby!"

* * *

The PAC-12 championships went extremely well, both for the Stanford team and for Paige and Emily. The entire freshman class performed well, and there were great expectations - among the coaches and the experts - for their next three seasons together.

* * *

Hanna caught the red-eye into San Jose late Wednesday night, sleeping over in Paige and Emily's room (the first time that Emily's bed had been slept in for months) before they set out for San Diego early Thursday morning. Emily rode shotgun as Hanna slept off her flight and the jet lag in the back.

Paige was much calmer than she usually was on long trips, exhaustion and anticipation keeping a lid on the road rage that she was otherwise prone to exhibit. The fact that Hanna was in the back seat no doubt contributed as well. Paige was comfortable enough around Emily to show her true colors, but she would never let an acquaintance see her dark side. However, Paige was also in a unusually good mood for the drive. It was partially the afterglow of the team's exceptional performance at championships and partially relief at having midterms behind her, but, mainly, it was anticipation of 10 days of fun in the sun with Emily. She reached over and placed a hand in her sleeping girlfriend's lap. Emily looked angelically peaceful. Paige resisted the urge to whip out her phone and take a picture, for safety's sake.

They made it to San Diego in time check in and drop off their bags before Emily and Hanna went to the airport in San Diego to pick up Caleb. He and Hanna were back together, and Paige was relieved when she found out that he was coming, too. She didn't want to be the only outsider.

Spencer and Aria had flown down Monday night, as their Spring Break started earlier than Stanford's. Emily called Spencer to let them know that they had all made it down to San Diego. They needed some time to recover from the drive and the flight, so they made plans to meet for dinner a couple of hours later.

* * *

Paige had met Caleb when she was in Rosewood for Thanksgiving. At dinner, she met Spencer's boyfriend, Toby, who struck her as someone straight out of a casting call for the Twilight movies, and Aria's boyfriend, Ezra. She tried not to be too creeped out about Ezra. There had been rumors of teachers engaged in inappropriate relationships with students at Paige's high school, and she had seen stories on the news about teachers from other schools in her district who got arrested for that, but, apparently, everything was fine, now that Aria had graduated and was no longer a minor. They certainly made a cute couple, Paige had to admit. In fact, they were all cute couples. Paige had to wonder whether there was an unusually large number of hot people at Rosewood High, or whether it was just the crowd that Emily rolled with.

Paige felt Emily's hand on her thigh under the table. Emily was giving her an "Are you okay?" look. Paige smiled to let her know that she was fine. Emily was worried that Paige was feeling left out, with all the Rosewood gossip going. Paige's look reassured her. She knew Paige well enough to know that she tended to zone in and out of conversations, giving her mind the freedom to wander. It was a sharp contrast to the focus that Paige displayed when she was swimming.

* * *

"So what do you say, Em?" Paige asked, as she lay next to Emily in their hotel room's queen-size bed. "Shall we cross San Diego off of our list?" wiggling her eyebrows, trying her best to be seductive.

"San Diego is in California, silly," Emily responded sleepily. "It's already been crossed off."

"Still... We're in this nice hotel room, we're on Spring Break, We have no classes or training to worry about."

"We've been in the car all day, we're exhausted, I smell like sweat," Emily countered.

"Are you going to tell me," Paige began, kissing that spot on Emily's neck that always got to her, "that we're going to be the only couple in this hotel _not_ having sex tonight?"

Emily rolled over to face Paige. "Of course we're having sex tonight!" she giggled. "I just didn't want you to think that I'm easy!" Paige burst into deep laughter. Emily smacked her sharply on the shoulder. "Hey!" she protested, "It's not _that_ funny!"

"No, no!" Paige said, trying to regain her composure, "It's not funny at all! It was just so unexpected! You caught me off guard."

"So, you _do_ admit that I'm _not_ easy?"

"No, Emily! You're hard! You're hard! Or whatever the opposite of easy would, in this case."

"Or whatever will get you laid," Emily said in a mocking tone.

"Um, basically!"

"Okay. Let's get it over with!"

* * *

On Friday morning, the spring breakers decided to venture out only as far as the hotel's pool, supposing that the beaches would be swarming with people.

Hanna took off her cover-up, and Paige's jaw dropped.

"Emily! You promised!" she protested angrily.

Emily gave a look of pure innocence. "I didn't say a word!"

"So, I'm just supposed to believe that it's pure coincidence that Hanna shows up wearing a white bikini?"

"What?" Hanna sounded surprised. "What's wrong with a white bikini? Does it wash me out?"

"Nice try, Hanna." Paige wasn't buying it.

"What's going on?" Aria asked.

"Okay," Paige said, trying to remain good-natured. "You're all going to find out anyway. When we started talking about spring break, I told Emily - _in confidence_ \- that I had a brief... mental... image..." Paige struggled to get the words out over the embarrassment of her confession. "...of Hanna's butt in a white bikini."

All the guys looked up. Hanna gasped. Emily laughed.

Hanna came clean, "Emily just told me to wear a white bikini to mess with you! I had no idea that you had been... _visualizing_!" she said, arching her eyebrows on the word. Paige turned a deep shade of red. Hanna turned her back to Paige and twerked. "So, was it everything that you dreamed of, Paigey?"

Paige looked helplessly over to Emily. Emily just shrugged. "Don't look at me! I told you that I wouldn't tell her, and I didn't!"

Hanna skipped over to Paige, not-so-subtly staring at her bikini top. "So, Paigey..." she oozed, "Now that you've had the chance to live _your_ fantasy, am I going to get the chance to see mine?" Hanna turned to the rest of the group and mimed getting a nipple piercing, mouthing the words as she pointed towards Paige's left breast.

Paige shook her head resignedly and lay down in the lounge chair next to her girlfriend's. It was, apparently, going to be a long week.

* * *


	25. Spring Break 2: Paige and...

On Friday night, the crew found themselves at a massive bar that seemed to have sprung up just for Spring Break. They were having what they called a "Coeds Acting Cray" night, because they didn't want to get sued for calling it "Girls Gone Wild." It's no surprise who choice it was to be there.

Hanna came back to the group with some forms in her hand. "Okay, we have to sign these forms to be able to compete in the 'Rate Your Rack' competition. And we have to use our real IDs." The eighteen-year-old requirement for exposing oneself was enforced a good deal more rigorously than the twenty-one-year-old requirement for drinking. Fortunately for the Cray Coeds who were there to compete, although the law stipulated that they had to be at least 21 to get pass-out drunk, they only needed to be 18 to make a decision that could reasonably be expected to haunt them for the rest of their lives.

Hanna walked boldly up to Paige and thrust a form in her face. "Never going to happen, Hanna!" Paige was shouting so that she could be heard over the driving music and the raucous crowd.

"Why not? Everybody else is doing it!" Hanna shouted back.

" _Nobody_ else is doing it, Hanna."

"Well, I'll do it if you will!"

"I have no intention of winding up on some video that gets plastered all over the internet."

"You can sign the release form for the contest without checking the box to consent to be in the video."

"Yeah, and I'm sure that none of the frat boys with cell phones will post their videos without a release form, either!"

"Oh, so what? If your boobs go viral, how is that a bad thing?"

"Okay, Hanna. I know what this is really about."

"We _all_ know what this is about, Paige. But look at it this way: So, I get to see your boobs. Big deal. Think of all the other boobs _you'll_ get to see!"

"Believe it or not, the fact that I'm attracted to women doesn't mean that I'm interested in seeing all the boobs that I can. _You're_ way more obsessed with boobs than I am!"

Hanna tilted her head and sneered at her. "I'm not obsessed with boobs. I'm obsessed with one boob. _That_ boob." She poked a finger in the direction of Paige's chest, but Paige was quick enough to deflect it.

"You know, I think I've figured you out, Hanna. It's not about my piercing at all, is it?"

"Honey, you obviously haven't me figured out. It's _all_ about the piercing."

"Actually, I'm pretty sure that it's about this secret that you're not in on. I mean, if I told you that I had a heart tattooed on my armpit, you'd be just as obsessive about getting a glimpse under my arm!"

"Wait, I've seen your armpits! How did I miss your tattoo?"

"I was speaking hypothetically, Hanna!"

"My ass! Prove it! Let me see your armpit!"

"See? You're making my point right now!"

"Paigey!" Hanna drew out the syllables. "You have to give me _something_!" she whined.

"Okay, first of all, can you stop calling me that?"

"I'll make a deal with you: Show me your armpit, and I'll never call you Paigey again."

"Really? Deal!"

"Unless you don't really have a tattoo. In which case, show me your boobs!"

"Jesus, Hanna!" Paige screamed as she swatted Hanna's hand away from her chest just a moment too late.

"Hey – I didn't feel anything! Is your boob ornament hy-po-thet-ical, too?" Hanna's drunken mind did its best to wrap her tongue around the word.

"You grabbed the wrong boob, Hanna. Jeez, as much as you stare at it, you should know that it's the left boob!"

"I can't believe I had one shot and I blew it!" Hanna got a sly look in her eye. Paige quickly turned aside from her.

"Caleb!" Paige called down the bar, "Would you, please, come collect your drunken mess of a girlfriend?"

* * *

Everyone slept in – or slept it off, rather – on Saturday morning. At a little past noon, they crawled down to a Denny's across the street from the hotel for "hunch" – hungover lunch. They kept the day low-key, sprawling out on the king-sized beds in Caleb and Hanna's room (Naturally, Caleb had a hack for getting great rooms in peak season, on the cheap.), reading the paper, catching up with their friends on social media, and playing cards.

It was Aria's turn to choose the evening's entertainment, and she managed to find Texas bar, complete with peanuts on the floor and a large dance area. After dinner, Aria was keen to dance, but Ezra declined. "That's what happens when you date the elderly," Paige whispered to Emily, who shot her a look. As a peace offering, Paige volunteered, "I'll dance with you, Aria!"

Aria was taken aback. "Do you mind, Emily?" Paige looked over to see Emily's response.

"Absolutely not! In fact, I want to see this myself!"

Paige pulled out Aria's chair and led her by the hand out to the dance floor. "Do you know how to two-step?" Aria asked.

"I guess we'll find out!"

They were handed cowboy hats as they stepped onto the floor. Paige sniffed at hers before deciding that it was safe to put on her head and, with a twirl, let go of Aria as the two of them found the pace of the spirited country song that was playing. Aria was shocked. The whole crew was shocked. Emily was in awe. Paige didn't miss a step or a turn or a tap. When the song ended, Aria gave her partner a hug and they headed back to the table.

"Wow, Emily! Your girlfriend's got some moves!" Aria gushed.

"I can see!" Turning to Paige, Emily said, "How come I never knew that you could dance like that?"

"I guess because you've never taken me to any country bars in Palo Alto!"

"Seriously, Paige," Spencer asked, "Where did you learn to dance like that?"

"What can I say? I'm from Central PA. It's practically Alabama. You know the saying? Pennsylvania is Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, with Alabama in the middle!"

* * *

Sunday morning, they hit the beach. Everyone piled into Spencer's rented Tahoe, because Paige refused to take her car. "Nobody's going to be tracking sand into my baby!"

They were hoping to avoid the Spring Break crowds by getting to the beach early, but, at 8:30, it was already a mob scene. They were determined to put their feet into the Pacific Ocean, though, so they braved the crowds.

Before long, Paige and Spencer were running sprints up and down the beach. It didn't start out as a competition, or even as exercise. It started out as Paige and Emily taking a leisurely stroll across the sand with Spencer and Toby, and it just escalated. Emily and Toby ended up locked arm in arm, watching as their girlfriends sped past them and back, both with their game-faces on. Emily was afraid that Paige was going to go into ultra-competitive mode and hip-check Spencer into the lifeguard stand, but they managed to keep it civil. When they finally wound it up, Paige came loping over to Emily with a huge, puppy dog grin on her face, her eyes asking, "Did you see me out there? Were you proud of me?" Emily pulled her in for a reassuring hug, saying, "Good job, Honey," as, over her shoulder, she shook her head towards Toby, who was engaged in a similar ritual with Spencer and shaking his head towards Emily.

It was up to Emily to choose Sunday night's entertainment, but, never being one to make a decision for a group, she deferred to Paige. Paige chose Karaoke.

"I thought that you hated singing," Emily pointed out.

"Em, it's not singing, it's Karaoke!"

"So you're going to get up there?"

"Of course! And you're going with me!"

"Oh, no, Paige!"

"Em! You've got a great voice! I've heard you sing!"

"You heard me sing to cheer up a sick woman, not to amuse a bunch of drunk college kids!"

Paige put their names on the list. By the time they got called up on deck, Emily was just inebriated enough to enjoy the experience. "Choose something fun, Paige! Not some cliché, angry, lesbian shit!"

"Oh, I think you'll find that my choice is about as far from angry lesbian shit as we can get!" They were called up on stage, and the opening notes of "Call Me Maybe" came on. Emily was so taken aback that she went over to Paige, hugged her around the neck, and planted a kiss on her lips. All of a sudden, they had the attention of all the guys in the bar. Emily was too much in love – and too tipsy – to care. Their singing came out a bit slurred, but what grabbed the audience's attention was the dancing. Paige and Emily were playing off each other, shamelessly and uninhibitedly flirting with each other on stage. They anticipated and responded to each other's moves, their dance as much in sync on the stage as it was when they engaged in dancing of the horizontal variety. When the song ended, they gave each other a congratulatory hug and kiss that definitely would have become inappropriately heated, had they not been rushed off the stage to make way for the next performers. They made it back to the table to high-fives all around. Emily shook her head wildly back and forth, her hair flowing freely, as she yelled out a "Whoo!" Paige couldn't take her eyes off of her. She couldn't remember when she had ever been so happy, when she had ever felt so free, so much in love with Emily, and so proud to be her girlfriend. She gave Emily a kiss – a kiss which was a promise.

* * *

Back at the hotel, Emily couldn't stop singing "Call Me Maybe." Paige would've been beyond annoyed by the repetition were it not for the searingly erotic dance that came along with it. Emily danced closer and closer to Paige, all the while freezing her in place with an intense, hypnotic, and unrelenting gaze into her eyes. When their bodies were impossibly close together, Emily initiated a slow, soulful kiss. Only then did Paige's eyes close, as she melted into Emily.

All of the action was taking place above the shoulders. Paige was working her fingers through Emily's hair as Emily tenderly rubbed the back of Paige's neck and their tongues moved deeper and deeper, intertwining, rolling over each other's teeth, tasting the toothpaste that had displaced the stale beer. Emily sucked on the tip of Paige's tongue, causing Paige to undulate subtly against her center. The reverberations of the moan that Emily released within Paige's mouth made Paige's undulations deeper and faster.

Emily put just enough space between them to allow room for her hands to slip underneath Paige's shirt, where she adoringly smoothed them over Paige's abs. The rock-hard ripples that her fingers encountered were making her wet. She hiked Paige's shirt up, using Paige's bra to keep it out of the way as she lightly ghosted her palms up and down Paige's side where it curved inward.

Emily backed away from the kiss, giving Paige a seductive look and a wicked grin as she descended slowly to her knees. She undid Paige's jeans and yanked them down to her ankles. Paige threw her head back in anticipation, lightly caressing the hair at the crown of Emily's head. Emily began placing wet, sloppy kisses over the expanse of Paige's stomach, tenderly drawing her fingertips down the inside of Paige's bare thighs. She swished her head quickly, to get her hair out of the way, but, it soon worked its way back to the forefront, tickling Paige's thighs in time with the kisses that were landing on Paige's abdomen.

Emily could feel Paige's heat on her chin. She saw the reddening around Paige's thighs. She cupped Paige through her panties and felt her arousal. She pulled the panties down, lowering her head in the same motion, and, soon, she was tasting Paige. Paige paused for a moment to step out of the clothes that were piled up around her ankles. Emily stood up, placing fingers where her tongue had been, and kissed Paige again as she guided her over to the bed and collapsed on top of her. Emily sat up to get undressed, and Paige took the opportunity to take her own shirt and bra off. The glint of Paige's piercing drew Emily towards it, her tongue running its well-practiced course over it while her hand tweaked Paige's other nipple.

Emily was grinding her thigh between Paige's thighs, but Paige needed more. She whined, "Em!" pleadingly, and grabbed Emily's ass to pull her harder against herself. Emily slid down and kissed Paige's clit, curling two fingers inside her, smoothing her other hand up and down Paige's body, teasingly tickling a finger across her abs. When Paige came, she came with authority.

Emily settled in next to Paige, smiling victoriously. She rolled over onto her side and pulled Paige's arm around her. Paige, however, wasn't finished. She began subtly drawing circles around Emily's nipples. Emily leaned her head back and nuzzled it into Paige. Paige cupped her breast and squeezed, and Emily placed her hand atop Paige's, guiding it in circles around the breast. She started grinding back into Paige, and Paige moved her hand down to Emily's crotch.

Paige put her head over Emily's shoulder and sucked on Emily's earlobe, which was burning up. The heat was too much for Paige. She couldn't be gentle or subtle anymore. She pinned Emily's shoulders down on the bed and kissed her, deeply and rough. Her pelvis was grinding aggressively into Emily, causing Emily to dig her nails deeply into Paige's back. Paige's eyes shot open at the sensation, and she saw the wonder and delight in Emily's eyes. She lowered her lips to the side of Emily's face and growled into her ear, telling her how hot Emily was making her, how dancing with her was a revelation, how she wanted nothing else out of life than learn every nerve and muscle on Emily's body. Hearing this, Emily sat up, pushing Paige into a sitting position on her lap, and kissing her deeply. She pulled Paige in by the back of her head, kissing so insistently that their jaws began to ache. Paige pulled back and kissed her way down to Emily's center. Emily leaned back on her arms, with her palms flat on the mattress behind her. She bent her knees, trapping Paige's head between her thighs, not being able to stop them from squeezing and releasing around Paige's head in a piston action. The muffling and unmuffling of Paige's ears turned Emily's moans and screams into a staccato pulsing. That combined with the alcohol that she had consumed was making Paige a little dizzy. She leaned her body forward and used her shoulders to force some space between Emily's thighs. Emily sat up, moving her hands off the mattress and into Paige's hair as she hung on for the ride.

Paige put her hands under Emily's back, angling her upward, her legs secured on Paige's shoulders. Emily locked her ankles, curled her toes, and squeezed. Paige's tongue, lips, and nose were wet from their dalliances in Emily's entrance. Emily began rhythmically squeezing her legs around Paige's neck. Paige let Emily's squeezes set her pace. She moved a hand to Emily's center, and Emily had to use Paige's shoulders for support in order to maintain the angle that Paige was working. Soon, her hips were gyrating wildly above the bed as she came with a loud shriek.

"Oh, God! Holy shit!" Emily shouted, when she finally came down.

"Yes. Holy shit," Paige agreed.


	26. Last Days of Freedom

Spencer, Aria, and the guys caught a flight back to Philadelphia early Monday morning. Emily, Paige, and Hanna headed back up to Stanford. Emily drove, with Hanna riding shotgun. Paige rode in the back, with her earbuds in, letting Hanna have Emily all to herself. Paige realized that, after Paige herself and Emily's parents, Hanna was the most important person in Emily's life, and she wanted to make sure that the two of them had some quality time together. Hanna was still had a lot of things to work through regarding her feelings toward Caleb, and Emily was glad to be there for her, much in the way that Hanna had been there for her when she was working through her feelings about Maya and Paige.

They routed themselves through Anaheim on the trek north, because Hanna had it on her bucket list was to meet Minnie Mouse. Spring Break was listed as one of the ten-worst times to visit Disneyland (Paige checked.), but it was Hanna. She would not be deterred. And she could be very convincing. It actually wasn't so bad, since they weren't there for the rides. It seemed like an awful lot of money, though, between parking and the passports, just to walk around looking for Minnie, so while Hanna went on her quest for Minnie, Paige and Emily wandered around looking for rides where the wait times were short.

Paige adamantly refused to go on "It's a Small World," until Emily bit her lip and gave her the look that she couldn't say no to. Emily perked up when Paige finally gave in, grabbing her by the hand and dragging her to the line. They rode in the back of the car, Emily in awe of the ride, and Paige in awe of Emily's excitement. Paige really wanted to kiss her – to _be_ kissing her – but Emily's attention was riveted. She posted many videos to Instagram that day.

* * *

As they were walking hand in hand through the park, Emily noticed a little girl staring intensely at them, tugging at her mother's sleeve and pointing at the two of them. Emily reflexively let go of Paige's hand when she saw the pair come close to them. "I'm sorry," the mother said, looking at Emily. "My daughter is convinced that you're Pocahontas."

Emily knelt down to the little girl's level and gave her a hug, explaining that she was Emily, but that she was flattered to hear that she looked like Pocahontas. "Is Pocahontas your favorite princess?"

"No, I like Ariel."

"I like Ariel, too!" Paige chimed in, telling the girl that Emily was part mermaid. The girl's eyes went wide.

"Not really," Emily confessed, "but I do love the water!"

Emily put her hair up after that, to avoid any further confusion.

After a while, Emily got a text from Hanna. She had tracked down Minnie Mouse, and she wanted them to come get in line to meet her. The found their way to Hanna's location, and Hanna joined them at the end of the line. She had managed to pick up a Minnie shirt for herself and some Minnie ears for each of them to wear in their photo op.

Mission accomplished, they grabbed a quick lunch and got back on the road to Stanford. Emily took another turn at the wheel. Hanna was going to offer to drive, but Emily warned her about how overprotective Paige was of her baby. They stopped for dinner, to break up the drive, and Paige took the homestretch back to Palo Alto.

* * *

Coach Meehan had scheduled one-on-one time with his swimmers over Spring Break, to review the past season and to go over their goals for the coming year. Emily's session was scheduled for Tuesday morning, meaning that Paige would have to entertain Hanna for about a half hour. _How hard could that be?_ Paige thought.

Pretty hard.

It turns out, when Hanna wasn't making inappropriate comments about (and groping at) Paige's body-accessories, they had very little to talk about. Paige took her out for breakfast, and they sat across the table awkwardly looking at their utensils and coffee cups until Hanna finally came up with a topic for conversation.

"So. How's Pru doing?"

"Oh, she's doing great. Really loving college."

"What's she studying?"

"Partying, from the sound of it. With a minor in men. She pledged at Gotta Getta Dude."

"Yeah, I _definitely_ need to party with her."

"You guys would be epic."

_Well, that killed about two minutes._

Hanna grew frustrated at the silence, again. "Jeez, Paige – were your first dates with Emily this awkward?" Paige reminded her that she and Emily had been friends before they started dating. "Oh, right. You guys were sleeping together before you started dating." Paige's head popped up, and she self-consciously looked around to see who may have overheard. Hanna rolled her eyes, "You know what I mean!"

"Yes, Hanna," Paige whispered, "but I'm not sure that the rest of the customers in this establishment know!"

And, the silence was back.

"She really loves you, you know," Hanna said, at last. Paige nodded her head enthusiastically. She wouldn't have been able to dim the smile that stretched across her face if she had wanted to. Hanna reached out and put her hand on top of Paige's, looking her directly in the eyes. "No, Paige. She _really_ loves you."

"I know that she does," Paige said softly, returning Hanna's serious look.

"Good." Hanna relaxed back into her seat, releasing her hold on Paige's hand. "You really love her, too, don't you, Paige?" she said after a pause. Paige dipped her head and smiled. "I can tell," Hanna said wistfully. "It's obvious how much she means to you."

"I've never felt this way about anyone before, Hanna," Paige admitted.

"I just hope that you know how lucky you are, because what you guys have doesn't just come around every day." Paige was starting to get emotional. Hanna wouldn't let up. "I'm so glad that she found you. God knows she deserves the kind of happiness that you bring her."

Paige stood up and grabbed Hanna in a hug. She had never seen this side of her. She knew Hanna the ditz; Hanna the party girl; Hanna the inappropriate. She was really touched to see Hanna so fiercely protective of Emily, and so genuinely happy for their relationship.

Emily walked into the diner and looked up from her phone to scan the room for Paige and Hanna. She was confused to see them hugging it out, apparently sharing a tender moment. Fortunately, she already had her phone in her hand. She had to get a picture, because she didn't expect to see this scene repeated in her lifetime. "Okay," she said when she made it over to them, "What did I miss?"

Paige released herself from Hanna's arms and spoke. "I think that your best friend was about to give me the 'break her heart and I'll cut a bitch' speech."

Emily saw the tears that Paige was fighting back and looked accusingly over at her best friend. "Hanna?"

Paige shook her head. "We were just talking about how lucky you and I are."

"Yeah, Em. I don't have to give Paige the 'cut a bitch' speech. She already _knows_ that I would! And I know," she added in a more serious tone, putting her hand on Paige's shoulder, "that she would never break your heart."

"Yeah_" Emily drew out the word as she tried to make sense of the situation. "I'm not quite sure what actually happened here, but I'm just going to assume that, whatever it was, you guys worked it out."

Emily grabbed a cup of coffee and joined them. Paige finished up and excused herself. Her meeting with coach was coming up in the afternoon, but she headed back to the room to give Emily some time with Hanna.

The restaurant had placemats with a map of the United States on them, to keep kids occupied while they waited for their food. Emily noticed that Paige folder hers up and put it in her pocket.

Emily took Hanna on a tour of the campus, and they took Paige's car to look around Palo Alto a bit and do some shopping.

* * *

Early Wednesday morning, Paige and Emily drove Hanna to the airport. She gave them each long, heartfelt hugs. She leaned in and whispered something into Paige's ear during their hug. Paige laughed, then spun Hanna around and gave her a push towards the door.

"What was that little exchange about, as if I didn't know?"

"She told me that this trip was our second date, and that she expects to see some boob on our third date."

They decided to stop for Mexican food in San José before they headed back to campus. Hanna was still the subject of their conversation.

"I'm glad that I got to see another side of Hanna. I'm glad that you have a friend like her."

"Yeah," Emily agreed. "She can be a handful, but, when it comes down to it, she's always been there for me." Emily explained that Hanna was the one whom she turned to when she was coming to an awareness of her sexuality. Hanna made her feel safe. "I mean, not everyone's experience is like yours, Paige," Emily teased. "It can be really rough for a thirteen year old. Your body and your mind are already going through all these changes. Life's so confusing as it is. And if everyone else is swimming in one direction and you're going a different way, there's just so much self-doubt and self-hatred and insecurity."

Paige reached for Emily's hand. "I wish that I'd known you back then."

Emily shook her head, smiling. "No. We met at the right time. Who knows what would've happened if we met back then? I don't think that I would've been ready for someone like you."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, we could've easily missed each other, you know? When I met you, I don't know – I already knew who I was. If we had met back when I was still trying to figure things out…" Emily trailed off. "And, maybe you weren't ready for me then, either."

Paige shrugged. "Well, I'm just glad that we're here, now." She leaned over to give Emily a kiss. "You were definitely worth the wait."

* * *

"So, what do you want to do for the rest of Spring Break?" Paige asked in the car on the way back to campus.

"Well, after my talk with Coach, I guess I need to get started on the off-season diet and workout regimen!"

"Same," Paige agreed, a bit downbeat. "What do you say we go for a jog tomorrow morning and hit the gym? Say, 5:30?"

"Whoa, Paige! You don't have to be so hardcore! We're still on break, remember? There's plenty of time to sleep in _and_ still get our training in."

"Oh, okay. Sorry. I was just thinking, the sooner that we get started back on our routine, the easier it'll make things on Monday."

"Or…" Emily's tone was suggestive, "We could take advantage of the break to do things that we won't have time to do once classes start up again!" Paige smiled, and her eyes brightened. "What do you say, McCullers? Horror movie marathon tonight?"

"Yeah. Sure," Paige deadpanned. "That sounds like way more fun than what I had in mind."

"Yeah, it'll be fun! Make some popcorn, cuddle together on the bed, I'll hold you when you freak out."

"Get ready to hold me, then, because you know that I'll be freaking out!"

* * *

Emily grabbed her laptop from the desk while Paige unpacked the snacks that they'd picked up on the way home. The off-season diet didn't start till Saturday, they decided. Something on Paige's desk caught Emily's eye. She went over to see, and recognized it as the placemat that Paige had taken from the restaurant. There were creases from where she had folded it, and there were red Xs through California, Washington, Arizona, and North Carolina.

"What's this?" she asked, holding it up in front of Paige, grinning. She had a pretty good idea what it was.

"I wanted to keep track of the states that we've crossed off of our list," Paige replied.

Emily smiled, shaking her head. It was just so Paige, literally crossing the states off. Emily went through the crossed-off states, rattling off the events. "Washington – Pac-12 championships, California – of course, Arizona – the Arizona State meet, North Carolina – NCAA championships." Paige smiled up at her with pride. "So, what are you going to do when someone asks you what all the Xs are for?"

"Who? Nobody's going to see it! It'll just be between the two of us."

"You say that," Emily said, wide-eyed and teasing, "but somebody _always_ sees these things. What are you going to do when YOUR DAD sees it?" She mock-gasped and raised her eyebrows ominously.

Paige thought it over. "I'll just tell him that I'm keeping track of all the states that we've been to together, because we want to get to all fifty. Bucket list."

"Uh huh. And what about Pennsylvania?"

"We've never made love in Pennsylvania…"

"Yeah, but if you tell your dad that you're tracking the states that we've been to together…"

"Right!" Paige got out her red Sharpie and crossed off Pennsylvania. "But, now, you have to do me in Pennsylvania," she said, with no hint of joking in her tone.

"Deal!" Emily agreed. "So, how does it work if we're in an airplane, for example, and we join the mile high club?"

Paige thought it over. "We just have to keep track of the time. I have a flight tracker on my phone, so we can put in the flight number and the time, and it'll tell us what state – or states – to cross off."

"You're can be such a geek, McCullers." Emily bent down and kissed her, holding her face between her hands.

"But I don't think that we should count it unless we're actually stopped on the ground, you know?" Paige was still dead serious about the process.

"So, if we're in the car driving through a state and you get a little frisky?"

"Jeez, Em!" Paige was genuinely shocked. "You know, if anyone had told me back in high school, when I was swimming against you, that we would be having this conversation one day, I would never have believed it."

"How about if we're stuck in an airport, on a layover, and I take you in the bathroom stall?"

"Count it! Definitely, count it!"

Emily fired up her laptop and settled onto the bed. "So, basically, what you're saying is, having sex with me in all fifty states is on your bucket list?"

"Yes it is," Paige said, not missing a beat. "And then, we can start crossing some foreign countries off of the list!"

* * *


	27. Of Motorcycles and Move-Ins

"Did Vicki talk to you? She told me that she wanted to do some off-season workouts with us," Paige commented as she and Emily headed to the gym to start their off-season training.

"Yeah, I think that it's a great idea."

They walked a little farther, and something occurred to Paige. "I wonder how Bob made out with her family this week."

"I know – he was so nervous about meeting them. You weren't that nervous when you met my parents were you?" Paige laughed out loud. "Oh, yeah, I guess you were."

"God – it seems like forever ago."

After a while, Paige wondered out loud, "Do you think that they've slept together yet?"

"Vicki and Bob?" Emily asked, although she knew whom Paige was referring to. "They haven't. They're taking it slowly."

"Good for them. No need to rush."

"Paige," Emily stopped in her tracks. She was concerned by that comment. "Do you think that _we_ rushed?"

"Oh, no, Em! God, no. No, we waited until we were both ready. It was perfect. The timing was perfect."

"It was, wasn't it?" Emily started walking again.

"Remember when we got to the cabin? I was freaking out at the state of it." Emily chuckled at the memory. "Remember what you told me?"

"Chill out, it doesn't matter?"

"You told me that, whatever happened, it was going to be perfect, because it was the two of us. You have no idea how much that helped me to relax. And you were right. None of that other stuff mattered. It was us, together, and it was perfect."

"I wouldn't change a thing," Emily agreed.

* * *

Even though they were still training almost every day, Paige and Emily found themselves with a little more free time now that the season was over. Of course, they were still spending a lot of time in the gym and the pool, and they were attending one of the top schools in the nation, so it was by no means a cake walk. They did, however, find that they had more time for each other and other pursuits.

Paige decided to take motorcycle classes. She wanted to be sure that Wayne Fields would have no reason to object to letting her ride his bike when she visited Rosewood in the summer. Classes met on a Saturday morning at a driving school a few miles from campus. There were several hours of classroom sessions before the students were allowed to get near the bikes.

The driving school had a store where they sold gear and accessories. After the first class, Paige took a selfie in a leather motorcycle jacket, holding a helmet under her arm. She sent it to Emily, asking "Still think that me & a bike is such a bad idea?" Emily had to admit that Paige was making a very convincing case.

A couple of weeks later, when the lessons finally moved out of the classroom, they started small, doing pre-ride checks, braking, putting one's foot down, laying the bike down, and basic maneuvers. The students were all itching to get on the track and get up to speed, but the instructors – and the school's insurance policy – were adamant about putting safety first.

When Paige finally got to get onto the track, it was so much better than she could have imagined: The power, the speed, the agility; the feel of the wind, the rush of adrenaline. The only thing missing was Emily, behind her with her arms encircling her waist, holding on tight.

The driving school had cameras mounted around the track so that they could show the students anything that they did wrong. They also offered copies of some of the better pictures for sale. One of the cameras captured a great shot of Paige, all in black, leaning into a turn as her hair flew behind her. She bought a copy to post above her desk in the room. She took a picture of the picture and texted it to Emily with the words, "The only thing that's missing is you."

Paige found a frame for the 8x10 picture and put it on the shelf above her desk, so that she could look up and see it when she got frustrated as she studied. Somehow or another, though, the picture kept finding its way over to the shelf above Emily's desk.

On the last day of class, Paige got a certificate, which was supposed to get her a discount on motorcycle insurance. She also took and passed the test for a Class M1 license.

* * *

The deadline to sign up for room draw for the 2015-2016 academic year was approaching fast, and Paige and Emily's discussion was growing tense.

"Don't you want an apartment off campus, away from everybody, with showers that we don't have to share with the entire floor – and with an adult-sized bed?"

"Paige, there's no way that my parents would let me move into an apartment with you."

"Why not? We've been living together all year!"

"In a _dorm_ , Paige. It's different."

"How is it different? What can we do in an apartment that we can't do in the dorm room?" The smirk that Emily gave in reply said, "Puh-leeze."

"Wait, your parents don't know that we've – you know... done stuff?"

Emily laughed. "As far as my Mom's concerned, I'm still a virgin. And this whole lesbian thing is just a phase. You know, she expects me to pull an Anne Heche any day now."

"Didn't you once tell me that you could never put anything over on a Filipina, because they're very intuitive?"

"That doesn't mean that we can't also be in denial!"

"Well, if you've been able to resist temptation when we're bumping up against each other in this cramped little room, why wouldn't you be able to resist in an apartment?"

"It doesn't do you any good for you to convince me, Paige." Emily was more weary than annoyed of this discussion. "Pam Fields is the one whom you have to convince. And she's a much tougher sell. Do you want to call her?"

Paige paused to think it over. "What if we were married?" She asked, mostly joking. She was excited enough at the thought of getting a place with Emily to make the idea almost seem reasonable.

Emily glared at her. "I'm _not_ getting married just to get an apartment off-campus. And I love you, Babe, but I'm not marrying _anybody_ before I finish school!"

"Well, how about this: I can get an apartment, you get a room on campus, and you can just "unofficially" move in with me."

"First of all, my parents would never fall for that, and second, you wouldn't be able to afford an apartment by yourself."

"I could get a roommate!" Emily smacked her arm and gave her a death glare. "Well, we've got to do something, Em!" Paige whined. "The deadline to sign up for room draw is Friday!"

* * *

"I've got it! I've got it!" Paige shook Emily awake in the middle of the night. "You and Vicki can get a room in the dorms, and Bob and I can rent an apartment. That way, Bob can move into Vicki's dorm room, and you and I can share the apartment!"

"What time is it?" Emily asked, groggily. She found her phone and saw that it was about five minutes to three. "You woke me up for that?"

"It's brilliant!"

"First of all, why would Vicki and Bob agree to take the dorm? Wouldn't they want the apartment, if he's paying rent, too?"

"I can make him a deal – 60/40 split on the rent. My Dad will pony up – I'll just tell him that it's better for my swimming and my studies. Too many distractions on campus!"

"Second," Emily continued, not even taking the time to refute that argument, "who says that Bob and Vicki even _want_ to move in together? That's a huge step, especially when it comes to living in a cramped dorm room, as you so wisely pointed out the last time we discussed this."

"But, it worked for us!"

"We're different."

"How are we different?"

Emily looked at her as though she had never heard a more ridiculous question. "We're soulmates," she replied, her expression adding _Duh!_

Paige pursed her lips and tilted her head, acknowledging Emily's point. "I will not be deterred, Emily Fields! I _will_ find a way to make this happen!"

"Oh, fuck it. Let's just get some sleep. I'll call my Mom in the morning."

"Really?"

"The worst that she can do is say no."

"No, the worst that she can do is pull you out of Stanford and send you to a monastery."

"Nunnery."

"Whatever."

* * *

"... And that's why Paige and I were thinking," Emily had her eyes closed, and she was biting her finger. Paige stroked her thigh for support. Emily agreed to let her in the room only after she promised that, no matter what, she wouldn't make a sound. "… that we should get an apartment together. Off campus."

The phone went silent. After a while, Emily held it away from her face, looking at it to ensure that the call hadn't been dropped. Finally, she heard her mother's stern voice on the other end. "Don't you lie to me, Emily Fields. Are you and Paige sleeping together?"

Emily closed her eyes again and dug her fingernails into Paige's arm. Paige kept her word, though, and didn't make a sound. "Mom, we've been… sharing a bed for a few months, now." Emily paused, to allow her mother to freak out, but the line remained silent. "But we weren't _sleeping together_ , not at first. After the holidays, we decided that we both loved each other and that were both ready, so we slept together. We're… sleeping together"

Pam Fields winced into the phone. Emily could only imagine the facial expression that she was making. "Well," she said at last, in a soft voice, "Thank you for not lying to me, Emmy. You know how your father and I feel about that. It has nothing to do with Paige or with the fact that you two are…" Emily rolled her eyes at her mom's struggle to say the word. " – same-sex. But how we feel is not the point here. You girls have made that decision, and there's nothing that your father and I can do about it. We're not going to try to monitor your every decision from way out here. And you're adults. So, we're just going to trust the way that we raised you, and trust that you girls have enough discipline and maturity to handle this situation."

"Of course, Mom. We wouldn't even ask you about it if we hadn't discussed it ourselves and agreed that we can handle it responsibly."

"Your father and I agreed to let you go to school on the other side of the country because we trusted you for the young lady that you've become, and, even though we don't necessarily agree with your decisions, we trust that you're making those decisions based on what's best for your future, not just what feels good right now."

"Yes, Mom."

"I mean, I know that it's going to be fun to have your own place, and that you're going to feel as though you're all grown up, but, just remember that you're not on your own yet. Your father and I are still paying your bills. And we're doing that as an investment in your future. We'd like to think that you're investing in your future, too."

"I know, Mom. I am. And I appreciate the sacrifices that you and Dad are making."

"Okay, Emmy. You know that we love you and we trust you to behave responsibly."

"I love you, too, Mom."

"Okay, Honey. Is Paige there?"

"Yes, she's here," Emily said with a quizzical look towards her girlfriend. When Paige heard those words, she started uncrossing her arms in front of her stomach, mouthing the word "NO!", and miming locking her lips with an imaginary key to remind Emily of her vow of silence. Emily handed her the phone. Paige prepared herself for a dressing down.

"Hello, Mrs. Fields?... I'm sorry – 'Pam?' Yes… Yes… Oh, we had fun in Rosewood, too… No, I'm not sure about this summer. Emily and I have talked about volunteering at Rosewood High's swim camp… Yes, that would be great. I'd love to see you, too… I do, I love her very much… I will, Mrs. – Pam! Yes, thank you… Okay, here's Emily" Paige let out a deep breath once the phone was back in Emily's hands.

Emily said a quick good-by to her mom before she hugged Paige enthusiastically. "I can't believe it!" she squealed into Paige's ear. "So, what did she want to talk to you about?"

"Just chit-chat, actually. No death threats. No, 'My husband's got a gun.'"

"You were expecting that?"

"Kind of. I was expecting _some_ kind of warning about cohabiting with her daughter. I guess she figured she covered it all with you."

"I guess so. Ahhhhh! Paige! We're getting our own place!"

"Um, Emily?"

"Yeah, Paige?"

" _Does_ he have a gun?"

"Of course, he does, Paige! But you don't…"

"All right!" Paige couldn't contain her excitement.

"… have to worry?" Emily completed her thought, somewhat puzzled. "Why does that excite you?"

"Rosewood. Summer. Motorcycles. Gun ranges."

* * *

Finding a good apartment was proving to be more difficult than Paige and Emily had anticipated. There were many students – graduate and undergraduate – competing for scarce resources: affordable, clean apartments near campus with landlords who weren't crazy.

It was the sort of undertaking that required knowing somebody. They tried their friends on the swim team, but those apartments were passed down from seniors to juniors, with little or nothing left over for freshmen.

Finally, out of pure desperation, Emily thought that it couldn't hurt to call their friends the Herndons, and, sure enough, they knew somebody; – a mechanical engineering professor who used to fly in the same club as Fred. He and his wife had an investment property that they rented out only on the basis of personal recommendation; consequently, it had gone empty for the past two school years. The Minters didn't really need the money, and they had a soft spot for students, especially ones whom Fred and Gloria thought so highly of, so the rent was way below market value. It turned out to be the perfect solution.


	28. Winding Down Freshman Year

The off-season workouts became quite an event. It started as Paige, Emily, and Vicki getting together informally, but, soon, Vicki's roommate, Jana, wanted in. Little by little, more and more of the team's freshmen came on board, and Emily found herself coordinating the pool, gym, and track time schedule for the freshmen. Coach Meehan got wind of the way that his freshmen had stepped up to organize themselves, and he was impressed.

* * *

When Spring Hosting came around, Paige and Emily signed up to host one of the high school seniors who was being recruited by the swim team. "She's from the Philadelphia area," Paige pointed out, when she saw whom they'd been assigned. "Do you know her?"

"The name sounds familiar. I'm pretty sure I've competed against her – maybe we were in camp together."

Paige was thinking that the name sounded familiar, too. The fact that she was being recruited by Stanford meant that she must have made a name for herself.

April had definitely heard of Paige and Emily, and she was excited to hear that they would be her hosts for the weekend. Once the recruits got signed in and received an overview from the coaches, their hosts came and picked them up. Paige and Emily took April to the cafeteria for dinner. They couldn't help noticing the wide-eyed way that she was staring at them.

"We were trying to figure out whether or not we ever swam against you," Emily told her when they settled in at a table. "Your name sounds familiar."

"I was at the regionals in spring of 2014, your senior year. You guys were both amazing," April said, somewhat star-struck. "I was on the relay team. I swam anchor against you," she said, looking at Paige. "You wouldn't remember. You beat us rather handily!"

"Oh, April Brockman!" Paige exclaimed in recognition. "I remember the film from that race." The race wasn't close by the time that April got into the water, but she was able to close the gap between a lot of the other swimmers. "You really moved through the water. We called you the torpedo!"

April was in awe of the fact that the two swimmers she had idolized actually knew who she was. Emily assured her that she wouldn't be recruited by Stanford if she wasn't top-notch. "Everyone here is, pretty much, the best on her high school team. I'm not saying that to intimidate you. I'm just saying, don't treat us as though we're something special. If you come to Stanford, we're going to push you and you're going to push us. We each make each other better."

"You wouldn't be here if you weren't elite. And I, for one, am salivating at the prospect of having you on my team."

* * *

Paige and Emily were apprehensive about the sleeping arrangements. They certainly weren't going to deny who they were, but, at the same time, they didn't want to spook the high-schooler. And, as childish as it may seem, they really didn't want to sleep alone. When they got back to the room and got ready for bed, Amy pulled out a sleeping bag.

"Actually, you can take that bed," Paige said, pointing to what used to be Emily's bed.

"Oh, really? The list said that we should bring a sleeping bag."

"You're welcome to the bed," Emily assured her. "I'm sure it'll be more comfortable. Paige and I usually double up."

It took a second for the implications of that statement to sink in. "Oh… So you guys are – " Paige and Emily hung in suspense at the word that Amy was going to come up with. "more than just roommates, then?" she finished.

"We started out as just roommates. We weren't planning on anything more. We didn't really even know each other till Stanford. It's not typical!" Paige had the sudden compulsion to tell Amy her life story. Emily put her hand on Paige's forearm to calm her down.

"If it makes you uncomfortable, we'll sleep in separate beds," Emily explained. "We just wanted you to know that you're not putting us out by taking the bed."

"Oh, no, that's not what I meant. I don't have a problem with you two being together. I just didn't know." Amy went on to ask them the usual questions: Were they out to the team, how did the coaches feel about team members dating, did they encounter homophobia. Emily and Paige answered the questions patiently.

"Are you asking just out of curiosity, or is there another reason?" Emily asked her.

"Just curious. I guess that you'd call me an ally. I know that this sounds like a cliché, but a lot of my best friends are gay. I know some of the crap they face in high school, and I thought I could tell them something about your experience."

* * *

On Saturday morning, Paige and Emily took Amy through the training rooms, finishing at the pool, where she and the other recruits swam for the coaches. Her times were impressive. The recruits and their hosts joined the coaches and staff for lunch at the training table, and it was off to the airport. Amy insisted on getting a selfie with the two of them before she boarded the shuttle. "My teammates will be so jealous that I got to room with _both_ of you!"

When the coaches asked Paige and Emily for their impression, they gave Amy an unqualified yes, on the strength of her swimming and on the fact that she would be a great teammate.

Emily thought a lot about what Amy had said about taking information back to her friends who had had bad experiences in high school. She thought that this might be an area in which she and Paige could help when they volunteered at Rosewood. She and Paige pulled up the "It Gets Better" web site and checked out ways to get involved.

* * *

The training cooperative that had evolved from Paige, Emily, and Vicki's joint offseason workouts grew into a study cooperative as well, when finals rolled around and the teammates organized themselves into study cells. Bob, Vicki's boyfriend, even pitched in to tutor the swimmers who needed help with math or physics.

It was still a stressful time for Paige. Emily could feel Paige shutting her out, the way that she did when she was focusing before a race; – drawing herself inward and blocking out the rest of the world. It was the most frustrating thing, knowing that the woman whom she loved was feeling so much stress, but not being allowed to help her. Paige heard Emily sigh several times as they studied at their desks. She knew what it was all about, but she pretended to be in the zone, unable to hear the sighs. She was starting to wish that she had just gone to the library to study.

When Emily couldn't stand it anymore, she got up and walked over to Paige's desk. Paige cringed inside. Emily knew that Paige wouldn't want to talk, so she didn't talk. She just stood behind her with her hands on Paige's shoulders. She knew not to ask, "Are you okay?" or say that she was there for her, so she decided just to be there for her physically. She pointedly avoided sighing again. Paige just kept studying, as if Emily wasn't even there. Finally, Emily pressed a kiss into Paige's hair and patted her shoulder. As she turned to walk away, Paige grabbed her wrist. She turned around in her chair and pulled Emily into her lap. She held her close, her lips pressed into her temple all the while. Emily hoped that it wouldn't always be like this when Paige was struggling. She would need to discuss it with Paige, but at a time and in a way that wouldn't make her defensive. For now, she was just grateful that Paige didn't get like this very often.

Emily got up and went back to her desk. A few minutes later, she heard her phone beep on the nightstand. She walked over to check and was confused to see whom it was from.

**Paige 3: Study Break?**

Paige's phone was sitting next to hers on the nightstand. She couldn't figure out how Paige could have texted her. "Paige?" She shot Paige a confused look.

Paige got up and gave her a half-smile. "Take a walk with me?"

They headed out into the warm night holding hands. Paige's grip was almost painfully tight. Emily waited for Paige to speak. It was a long wait. Finally, Paige said, "I know that it's hard for you when I get like this, and I wish that I had more control over it."

"I just wish that I knew how to help you, Paige." Paige bristled on the inside. She didn't need help. "It just makes me feel as though you don't need me."

Paige stopped and turned to face Emily, taking both of her hands. "You know that that's not true, Em."

"Yeah, I _know_ it, Paige. I'm telling you what it _feels_ like, and it feels horrible."

"I'm sorry," Paige said, and they started walking again.

"So, what are we going to do?"

"I don't know."

They walked in silence a while before Emily asked, "Paige – that text?"

Paige laughed. "I programmed my phone to text you after 90 minutes. You know, in case I wasn't in a talking mood."

Emily grabbed her around the middle and smiled, shaking her head. "Thank you," she said.

"How much more studying do you have to do tonight?" Paige asked as they headed back to the room.

"Not too much. Why?"

"I was hoping that we could knock off early. Just cuddle tonight."

Emily had learned that, in those times when Paige got stressed and didn't feel like talking, she also got insecure and clingy. Emily needed to feel connected to Paige, too. "Of course we can," she said. "I'd like that."

* * *

Finals were finally over, and Paige and Emily were in the mood to party. It's just a shame that they went to Stanford. There was usually something going on at the frats, but it was hardly what could be called a party school. Vicki had some friends from high school who went to Cal. That's how they found themselves in Berkeley on a Friday night. Bob wasn't a drinker, so they had a ride home afterwards.

"So, how is this different than the fraternities at Stanford?" Paige asked Vicki, yelling to be heard.

"It's just nice to get off campus – check out a different scene."

"Dance with me!" Emily pleaded, pulling Paige into the area where drunken undergrads were bumping into each other to the driving beat of the music. Paige was just as eager to get out there with her. They both needed a physical release after the rigors of their first year. But that was all behind them, now. It was time to dance.

They found a spot on the floor and danced with pure ecstasy and abandon. They had always been able to communicate physically, and, in times of stress, their physical communication could actually rival their verbal communication. With their bodies, they were saying, _I missed you. I need you. I love you. I want you. I_ _ **want**_ _you._

The rest of the night was a blur. Before they realized how they got there, Paige and Emily were in the back seat of Vicki's car, going at it like - well, teenagers in the back seat. Had she not been wasted out of her mind, Vicki would've been embarrassed for them. Paige and Emily weren't drunk. They had been too busy on the dance floor to do much drinking. Bob was assiduously focused on the road, trying his best to ignore the goings on in the rear view mirror.

Their lovemaking that night was slow and tender. It wasn't about getting each other off, but about connecting physically; a continuation of the communication that they had begun in their dancing. It felt like meeting – _really_ meeting – each other for the first time.


	29. At Home with Nick

Paige and Emily were fortunate that the apartment that they were renting had sat empty for a couple of years; more important, that it was empty when they had to move out of the dorm. Their landlords, the Minters, didn't mind letting them store some of their boxes there for the summer. When the school year ended, they packed up their room and dropped off some of the things that they wouldn't need or couldn't carry back home. They left the car and the keys with the Minters. It was the least that they could do, in view of how much they were getting from the arrangement.

Fred and Gloria met them for lunch. Gloria wanted to cook, but Paige and Emily insisted that they let them take them out. There was a seafood place that Fred and Gloria liked, and it was a hit with Paige and Emily, too. The Herndons had followed the women's team's progress over the season, now that they had a vested interest. They wanted all the details of the competition including where they stayed and what they ate.

"Next time you're up in the SeaTac area, let me know!" Fred volunteered. "I know some great restaurants up there!"

Emily explained that they really didn't have much free time when they traveled with the team. "Also," Paige added, "they're pretty strict about our diets when we're competing."

"But we've been talking about taking a road trip one of these summers, and we'll definitely have to give you a call to pick your brain."

"Well, he knows all of the best places from the Pacific to the Mississippi, don't you, Hon?" Gloria said, rubbing her husband's shoulder in pride.

Emily paid the bill and the Herndons gave them a ride back to Campus.

* * *

Paige and Emily had made plans to spend two weeks with Paige's dad before they headed to Rosewood for the remainder of the summer. Paige's dad met them at the airport in Philadelphia and let Paige drive back to the McCullers homestead while he sat in the back. Seeing the place, Emily thought that "mansion" was a better description. It was a bit overwhelming. She was definitely envious of the pool in the backyard.

Nick took the girls upstairs and showed Emily to the guest room. "Actually," Paige spoke up, "Emily's going to be in my room tonight." Emily's eyes almost burst out of their sockets. They hadn't discussed this. Of course, Nick McCullers knew that they were going to share an apartment back at Stanford, but Emily didn't know how he would react to knowing that they were sleeping in the same bed under his roof. She knew that it definitely wouldn't fly with Pam and Wayne Fields.

Nick responded in typical McCullers fashion. He looked first at Paige, then at Emily, then back to Paige to whom he said, "The bed in here is bigger," and bid them good night. Emily still didn't get Paige and Nick's method of communication. She was satisfied with the outcome, though.

* * *

Paige was tired. And cranky. Emily was tired and punchy. And something about sleeping in the same bed with her girlfriend, in her girlfriend's father's house, with his full knowledge had her giddy. She couldn't stop giggling. Cranky Paige wanted nothing more than to settle down and get some sleep, but, soon, she felt Emily's elbow in her ribs.

"Hey, Paige! Paige!"

"What?" Paige replied with a sigh.

"We should do it! We should totally do it in your dad's house!" Emily's giggles devolved into full out laughter, and she covered her mouth to try to muffle it.

"Emily, go to sleep. You're beyond punchy. It would be like taking advantage of a drunk person."

"No, I'm cool! I'm cool!" She fought off laughter. "I'm totally cool. I'll be good, see?" She was trying to keep a straight face.

"But _you_ told me," she pointed out wearily, "that you could never have sex in this house, because you'd die of embarrassment if my Dad heard you screaming!"

"Ooh – big bad Paige McCullers!" she teased in an artificially deep voice. "Think you're going to make me scream?" Emily lost it again.

"Em, we're both tired. Let's just go to sleep. I promise you that I'll do you before we leave town."

"What about your map? Your bucket-list map! It's a lie right now! It's mocking us!"

Paige realized that she was lying in bed, trying her best to talk Emily Fields out of having sex with her.

Emily continued to press her case. She turned over and looked at Paige. "I'll show you my boobs," she said, pulling down her collar. Then, Paige lost it, laughing out loud. "See? You _want_ this! You know that you _want_ this," Emily sang. Paige grabbed Emily and started kissing her. Emily pulled away. "No! No! Not here! Not here! We have to do it in your bed!"

"Em, you seriously want to sneak into my bedroom so that we can make love in my bed?"

"Yessssssssssssssssss!" Emily hissed out in a whisper. "Pleeeeeeeeeeeeease! Take me to your bedroom and take me in your bed! I want to be able to say that you fucked me in your bed!"

"Okay, see? This is why I love you so much!"

* * *

Paige told Emily to wait for her signal. She was going to go first, to make sure that the coast was clear. If anything happened, she would just pretend that she was going to the bathroom. "Why can't I just go with you? He knows that we're sleeping in the same bed!"

"But what do I tell him if he asks me why we changed rooms? 'Emily wants to have sex in the bed that I grew up sleeping in?'"

"Okay, fine! We'll do it your way!"

Paige crept out into the hallway. She saw light peeking out underneath the door to her father's room. He was usually an early-to-bed guy. She tiptoed toward her room.

"Paige, is that you?"

"Yes, Dad."

"Did you need something?"

"Um, no. I'm just going to my room to get… a… thing."

"Okay. Well, you know where everything is. I'm still awake, if you or Emily need anything."

"Okay. Thanks, Dad."

Paige made it to her room and signaled for Emily to follow. She mimed the tiptoe posture, to indicate that Emily would have to be quiet. Emily had her hand over her mouth to stifle her giggles. When she finally made it to the bedroom and Paige shut the door, she deadpanned, "'I'm just going to my room to get a thing!' That's how you won me over, McCullers! You're such a smooth talker!"

She started to giggle, but, all of a sudden, she found herself pressed up against the door being kissed hard by Paige, whose hands were roughly grabbing at her chest. This was supposed to be sneaky, dangerous, quickie sex, but, apparently, it was going to be dirty, rough, quickie sex. Emily was down. She yanked Paige's hair to pull her deeper into the kiss. Paige groaned, more in shock than in pain, and Emily held a finger to her lips, reminding her that she needed to be quiet. Paige didn't care anymore. She was too far gone.

Emily grabbed Paige by the hips and pulled her onto her thigh and began grinding away. It was a hot, humid summer night, and both of them had worn oversized shirts on top of boy shorts to bed. It didn't take long for things to get sweaty and wet. Emily's tongue darted out and licked a salty line of perspiration that was working its way down Paige's neck, biting down on the spot. Paige was moaning as she rotated her hips against Emily's warm, slick thigh. She managed to keep her mouth closed, but that did little to dampen the sound. Her hands were still riding roughshod over Emily's chest, straying down farther to her abdomen and hips. Emily was biting down on her shoulder, pinching her ass, scraping her spine with her fingernails. Paige welcomed every sensation. She put her arm around Emily's thighs and lifted her off of her feet. She carried her over to her desk, swiping everything that had been on top of it onto the floor with her free arm before she dropped Emily down on top of it.

Whoops. Her dad, hearing everything from her desktop crash to the floor called out to her. "I tripped! I'm all right!" she said before she turned her attention back to Emily.

Emily was insistent. "Not Here! Your BED!" She jumped up, wrapping her legs around Paige's waist, and Paige backed them into the bed. She sat down, still wrapped in Emily's legs. Emily took Paige's arms and raised them above her head. She reached for the hem of Paige's shirt and pulled it over Paige's head, disappointed to find that Paige hadn't put her piercing back in after the flight. She leaned in and kissed Paige, swallowing the moan that escaped when she pinched Paige's nipples.

Paige reached behind herself and grabbed Emily's calves, using them as a lever to push Emily onto her back. She dropped her hands down to Emily's thighs, holding them close to her body. This caused Emily's center to angle upwards, and Paige's tongue went to work on it through Emily's shorts. Emily squirmed under the assault of Paige's tongue, but she was effectively pinned in place by the powerful hands that were on her thighs. She was biting her forearm to suppress her screams.

Paige let go of Emily's thighs so that she could relieve her of her boyshorts. Emily threw her legs over Paige's shoulders, and Paige went to work kissing and caressing Paige's legs. Emily growled, "Fuck me hard!" and Paige obliged, sucking on Emily's clit as she curled her fingers inside. Emily sat up on her elbows and watched Paige work, smoothing her hands over Paige's shoulders to encourage her. Then, time stood still; Emily's thighs clenched like a vice around Paige's head, and she screamed out with both hands covering her mouth.

* * *

"Do we sleep here, or do we go back to the guest room?" Paige wondered out loud.

"Will he check?"

"I guess not. We probably want to get up before he does, though, in case he knocks on the door to the guest room in the morning."

"Yeah – or comes in here looking for 'a _thing_.'"

Paige reached over for the alarm clock on her nightstand. "Oh, fuck!"

"What's wrong?"

"I'm going to have to find a way to get these sheets washed without him finding out."

Before Paige fell asleep, she nudged her girlfriend. "Hey, Em?"

"Yeah, Paige?"

"I love these ideas that you come up with in bed late at night!"

* * *

Sure enough, the next morning, Nick McCullers banged on the door of the guest bedroom to let Paige and Emily know that there was coffee brewing downstairs. They pulled on their robes, freshened up, and met him at the kitchen table. He was sitting with his face hidden behind the newspaper. Emily wasn't surprised to see that he was old-school enough to read an actual printed newspaper.

They exchanged grunted "good mornings" with Paige's dad, poured themselves cups of coffee, and sat at the table. Nick had set out some bagels. His voice rang out from behind the newspaper. "So, did you find whatever it was that you needed from your room last night, Paige?"

"Yeah, Dad," she asserted. "I got exactly what I was looking for." Emily kicked her under the table.

"You raised up quite a ruckus. Why didn't you turn on the lights? It sounded as if you bumped into the desk and knocked everything onto the floor."

Emily fixated on the coffee in her cup. She pretended to blow on it, to cool if off. She knew that, if she looked at Paige or paid too close attention to her conversation, she wouldn't be able to keep herself from laughing. Part of her was enjoying watching Paige squirm.

"Yeah, I guess I should have. I thought that I knew exactly where it was, so I was just going to grab it and go, without turning on the lights."

"What startled you?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Something must've spooked you. I'm pretty sure that I heard screaming."

"Oh, that… that was…" She looked to Emily for help. Emily couldn't fight the smile on her face, but she refused to look at Paige. "Yeah, I, um…"

Her dad turned down the paper and revealed the huge smile on his face. "I'm not even going to ask what was wrong with the bed in the guest room." Emily buried her face in the crook of Paige's neck. Paige turned bright red. "I guess you know where we keep the laundry supplies," her dad laughed.

* * *

Nick McCullers finished his coffee and got up to get ready for work. "What have you girls got planned for today? No, wait. I don't think that I want to know!" Emily tried once again to disappear into Paige's neck. "Don't look so guilty, Emily! Paige's times were great last season. You two must be doing something right!" He roared with laughter as he exited the kitchen, leaving them to wallow in surprise and embarrassment.

"Oh my God, Paige! We're totally busted!"

"Whoa!" Paige was flabbergasted. "If he hadn't made that comment about my times, I would never have believed that he was my Dad!"

"That's it, Paige! No more sex in Pennsylvania!"

Paige laughed it off. "You say that, now!"

"I'm serious! Especially not in Rosewood! Because that is definitely not the way that Pam and Wayne Fields would react!"

* * *

Paige and Emily allowed themselves one day off from training. On their first day back, they only used the pool for lounging and relaxing, but, after that, they got laps in before the sun got too hot, either before or after their morning run. Nick had set up a weight room in the basement, and they put some time in there when it got to be too hot outside.

Paige wanted to make sure that she had her evenings free. She was, after all, back home because she wanted to build on the progress that she and her dad had made in their relationship last Christmas. So, she spent time with Emily while he was at work, leaving the evenings for time with him. At first, the three of them just sat in the family room after dinner and made the occasional comment about whatever obscure event was on ESPNU, the only channel that Nick McCullers seemed to know how to tune the TV to. Over the course of the two weeks, though, they found themselves talking and interacting more, as the TV got muted, and, eventually, turned off.

On Friday night, Paige whipped out her old Monopoly game, and Emily learned where Paige's competitive spirit had come from. Paige had only played the game with her friends when she was growing up. She wasn't even sure that her father knew the rules, but he knew – and exploited – every one. They spent much of the night trying to sabotage each other, and Emily just looked on, losing terribly but thoroughly enjoying the spectacle.

The next day, they picked up Pru and went to breakfast. Pru had heard about the new Nick McCullers, but she was skeptical. It didn't take long for her to notice the difference, and she kept mouthing "Wow!" to Paige as he cracked jokes, nudging her with his elbow, and was generally the life of the party.

Before their time with Paige's dad was up, he took them down to his office to show them off to some of his colleagues. He spoke of Emily almost as though they were related; like a proud father-in-law. One of his colleagues had a son in high school who swam, and, before they left, Paige and Emily went to see him in the pool and gave him some advice about technique and about the recruitment process.

When their two weeks ended, both Paige and Emily gave her dad tearful good-byes. "Let's get together soon," he said to both of them, and they knew that he meant it.


	30. Promise to Pam

Pru stopped by Paige's house first thing Friday morning. She was their ride to Rosewood. Paige and Emily loaded up their gear, and they hit the road.

They spent most of the drive listening to Pru's rundown of all the great parties on campus that past spring. "The Jockathon was definitely the place to meet hot men - no offense."

"Why would we take offense at that?"

"I don't know, I just don't have a lot of stories to tell you about where the hot women were!"

Paige gave a look to Emily in the back seat. Emily was shaking her head. "You definitely need to party with Hanna!"

"Dude, I know!" Pru shouted animatedly. "She needs to get her ass out there! Rosewood's not that far away!"

They were actually going to meet Hanna for a late lunch in Rosewood after they dropped off Paige and Emily's bags at Emily's house. After lunch, Hanna suggested mini golf. Emily tried to signal her that it might not be the best idea, but Pru had already picked up on the idea. Emily had one last hope. She convinced the girls that they would enjoy themselves more if they didn't keep score and just played for fun. Paige wasn't so sure how much fun that would be, but she acquiesced to Emily's pleading eyes.

* * *

Emily noticed Paige cringe when Hanna made a tricky shot. Everyone else was cheering her for it. Paige closed her eyes and leaned her head back a little, mumbling something to herself.

Emily pulled her aside as Pru teed up her ball. "Okay. What's going on?"

Paige gave her a smile of pure innocence. "What do you mean?"

"What's with all the mumbling and the eye-rolling?" Paige shrugged her shoulders. Emily tightened her lips and glared.

"Okay, I'm just keeping track of _my own_ score - just so I'll know how well _I'm_ doing."

"So why did you cringe when Hanna made that last shot?"

"Cringe? What cringe?"

"Is she beating you, Paige?"

"God, Em - she's like a fucking mini-golf prodigy!"

Emily laughed. Of course, Paige was keeping track of their scores in her head. "Knock it off," she said. "Let's just enjoy the game and the company."

"Says the girl in last place!" Paige mumbled.

"What was that?"

Paige threw on her innocent smile again.

* * *

Pam was home from work by the time Hanna dropped Paige and Emily off. Pru had already hit the road, wanting to get home before it got _too_ late.

Wayne wouldn't be back in Rosewood until later in the summer.

Paige and Emily helped Pam get dinner ready. After dinner, Pam found a moment alone with Emily and told her, sternly, "Now, Emmy. I hope that you and Paige are going to respect your father and me by not sneaking around under our roof." She was looking deep into her daughter's eyes.

"Yes, Mom," Emily replied shyly. She felt a little guilty that her Mom had felt the need to ask.

As she and Paige brushed her teeth and got ready for bed, Emily gave Paige a serious look and told her, "No funny stuff this week, Paige." Paige laughed. Emily reiterated. "I mean it this time, Paige. My Mom had a talk with me!"

"Well, we knew that this day would come, eventually," Paige said, sadly.

"What day?"

"We knew that our streak of sleeping in the same bed have would come to an end at some point."

To their surprise, falling asleep alone didn't turn out to be the challenge that it had been after they first started sharing a bed. They had grown into each other like a foot in a comfortable shoe, each having adjusted to the contours of the other. They didn't view it as a bad thing - as if they'd grown so comfortable and were taking the experience for granted, but, rather, that they'd grown so comfortable together that it was almost as if they still felt each other when they were apart.

Of course, given the option, they would definitely have chosen to be together. Paige was especially clingy the following morning.

* * *

On Sunday morning, Pam Fields decided that she wanted to join the girls on their run. It had been a while since she'd actively worked out, and one of the things that Pam wanted to concentrate on, now that she and Wayne were empty nesters, was getting back in shape. "You're in _great_ shape, Pam," Paige encouraged her, remembering to use her girlfriend's mom's first name.

Emily was nervous about the plan. As the three of them were stretching, she gave Paige a gentle hand on the forearm and a stern look in the eye, as if to remind her not to go ultra-competitive on her mom. Paige's smile said _Of course!_ – but Emily was still leery.

Pam told the girls not to slow down for her sake. "If I can't keep up, I'll drop back. You don't have to lay back with me." Paige started out at a very slow pace. After a while, she noticed that Pam was huffing, so she slowed it down even further. Emily was shocked. She kept looking over at Paige, but Paige never rolled her eyes or shook her head in frustration. She just kept throwing smiles and thumbs up in Pam's direction.

When they neared the end, Pam was laboring. Paige turned around, jogging backwards, and started calling out words of encouragement: "We're almost there! Hang on – you can make it! Just one more push!" They slowed to a halt, and Paige gave Pam a big hug, yelling, "You did it!" Emily's heart swelled with pride at the sight.

Pam bent over, hands on her knees, to catch her breath. Emily put a hand on her back to make sure that she was okay. "Oh, Emily!" she said, "I had no idea how out of shape I've let myself become." Emily helped her to a seat. Paige came over with a big, excited smile on her face. "Guess what! You did a little over a mile! That's great for your first time back" It was the slowest mile that Paige had ever run, and she would never quit a run that early were she running on her own, but she made it sound like finishing a half-marathon. She knew that, for Pam, at this point, it was a comparable achievement. Her smile spread to Pam's face and to Emily's.

The two words running through Emily's mind were _Marriage Material_. Emily knew that Paige would get along well with her dad, with the guns and the motorcycle riding. She wasn't expecting her to be so great with her mom.

* * *

"You'd make a great coach," Emily remarked, as she and Paige walked hand-in-hand through downtown Rosewood.

"Are you saying that my swimming days are over? 'Cause I'm looking at a few more years of kicking your butt all over the pool, Fields!"

Emily gave her arm a playful smack. "I'm talking about running with my Mom this morning. I know how competitive you are, and how hard it must have been for you to keep that pace, but you were nothing but patient and encouraging."

Paige just shrugged it off. "Well, she should enjoy running. And everybody could use a little encouragement."

Emily gave her a kiss on the cheek. "You'd be great with kids."

Paige tried to joke her way out of this serious conversation. "Are you saying that you want kids with me, Fields?"

Emily looked away, smiling. "No, that's not what I'm saying!" she said shyly. "I meant _coaching_ kids." _But I would love that_ , she thought, and wished that she could say it out loud. Then she decided, why not? She held Paige's hand a little tighter and told her. "But I'd love to raise a family with you." She was looking at their hands while she said this. "You'd be a great mom." She bumped Paige's shoulder to cover up her embarrassment at what she had just admitted and tried to start walking again. Paige stood in place, holding Emily back by their intertwined hands.

"Wow, Emily. That's - huge."

Emily still couldn't look her in the eyes. "I didn't mean to scare you…"

"No, it's _good_ huge! _Great_ huge, in fact!"

Emily nudged Paige's shoulder again, and they resumed their walk.

* * *

The two week swim camp for middle schoolers and high schoolers started up on Monday. Most of the high schoolers knew Emily from her senior year at Rosewood High, and many knew Paige by reputation. Word had trickled down from Emily's facebook that she was sleeping with the enemy, as it were.

Coach Fulton, of course, was familiar with Paige's reputation. She was relying on Emily's recommendation of Paige as a coach. She knew that Emily had good skills of observation and great instincts.

As would be expected, Paige and Emily played well off each other, just as they did swimming relays, on the dance floor, and in the bedroom. Paige conveyed the mental aspect: preparation, focus, toughness. Emily stressed the physical: fluidity, mechanics, muscle-memory. It wasn't so much good cop/bad cop; more like mom and dad; - Emily the nurturer and encourager, Paige the motivator, setting high goals and taking no excuses. After the first week, Coach Fulton found that she could give them more responsibility and more latitude to plan and run the daily sessions.

It was an eye-opening experience for Paige and Emily. Both of them had dreams of swimming beyond college, although both knew that the odds were against those dreams. Their career dreams had never included coaching, but, after the experience in Rosewood, they definitely saw themselves coaching at some level, whatever they ended up doing for a living. The idea of investing in the next generation of swimmers was something that was gaining appeal with them. If that developed into a career or a life-calling, they were certainly open to it.

But, for the summer, they were just enjoying watching the girls in the swim program develop and improve their skills and gain an appreciation for the science and the sport of swimming.

* * *

Living under Pam and Wayne's roof – and rules – was becoming increasingly frustrating for Paige and Emily. Being so close to each other physically without being able to be physically intimate was a kind of torture. Coach Fulton let Paige and Emily stay behind after the swimmers went home in the afternoons, and they burned off some of their frustrations in the pool.

"Emily," Paige confessed sadly, "I'm going crazy! I don't want to sound like a sex-crazed adolescent, but I can't stand not being able to connect with you physically." Emily had driven them to an overlook on the outskirts of the town for an intense make-out session. In a way, it helped them regain the intimacy that they were longing for, but even more, it only increased their frustration at not being able to connect fully.

Emily had made a promise that she wouldn't sneak around behind her mom's back. She was trying to find a loophole. Or a plan B: Sneaking around in Hanna's house; going to visit Paige's dad for the weekend.

The solution came from an unexpected source. Coach Meehan called Emily about an alumni fundraiser that was coming up in Washington, DC, over the weekend. The Potomac Area Stanford Club set up a conference with several female athletes, and the representative from the swim team had been forced to cancel at the last minute because of a family emergency. Coach Meehan thought that, since Philadelphia was so close, Emily might be able to fill in on short notice. Stanford would pay her train fare and put her up in a hotel overnight. Coach Meehan was delighted to learn that Paige was in Rosewood, too, and he said that it wouldn't be a problem to get a ticket and a room for her, as well. Emily was about to say that Stanford didn't have to shell out for an extra room, but she realized that it would be easier to convince her mom to let her go with Paige if her mom could at least _pretend_ that they were going to be in separate rooms.

* * *

The trip from Philadelphia to DC was only two hours long, but it was the longest trip that Paige could imagine. "Don't they have those sleeper cars where you can pull the curtain and have some privacy?" Paige couldn't stop her knee from manically bouncing up and down. Anyone watching would have thought that she was afraid of train travel.

"Paige, seriously. For a two-hour trip?"

"Emily, do you have any idea how long it's been?"

"So, we can wait another couple of hours. And, look on the bright side! We'll be able to cross DC off of our list!"

"It's going to be the fastest X that we ever earned, I can tell you that."

Emily put her hand on Paige's knee, stroking it gently to calm her down. She underestimated how much she missed Paige's body. The gentle strokes became more intense, and her hand strayed to bolder heights along the length of Paige's thigh. The train wasn't crowded, but they were far from alone, and what Emily was doing – and where it was leading – definitely called for privacy. "Shit!" she said under her breath. "Can't they move this thing any faster?"

The train pulled into Union Station (finally!), and Paige and Emily caught the shuttle to their hotel in Arlington. They called the focal from the Stanford Club, Lynn Murray, and arranged to meet her in the hotel's conference room after they checked in and dropped off their bags. Lynn gave them their nametags and a copy of an agenda for Saturday's events. There was an informal mixer in progress, and Lynn invited them to come meet some of the alumnae and guests. Paige begged off, saying that they were exhausted from the trip. Emily said, "We'd love to!" gently elbowing Paige in the ribs. Paige forced a smile onto her face.

When they finally made it back to the hotel room – Paige's, because it was two doors closer to the elevator – things got heated in a hurry. Paige was shoved against the door before she could get her jacket off. She thought that it was going to be the first time that they had sex fully clothed, but after some passionate kissing and groping, Emily backed off and slowed things down. She guided Paige to the bed and slowly undressed her, then herself.

They made slow, tender love, finishing in a wave of passion and relief. Afterwards, Emily got up and started gathering her clothes. "Where are you going?" Paige asked, raising her head off of the pillow.

"Stanford spent a lot of money to get me a room. It would be a shame to waste it."

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"Yes," Emily replied, tossing Paige her clothes. "I'm saying, 'Take me back to my place and have your way with me!'" she said, playfully.

* * *

Rather than quench their desire for each other, the weekend in DC only added fuel to the flames. Having a taste of what they had been denied since they got to Rosewood only made them hungry for more. It got to be too much for Paige when she and Emily were making out desperately on the couch in the living room while Emily's mom was at work.

"Emily, please!" Paige begged, "You've got to give me more."

Emily moaned. "I can't, Paige! I promised!"

"Your mom won't find out! She's at work - she's not coming back till tonight!"

"Paige, I _promised_. I'm not going to break a promise to my Mom!"

"What about a handjob? Guys always say that handjobs don't count as sex!"

Emily glared at Paige. Then, she stood up and started walking away, till Paige grabbed her by her wrist. She had one last desperate idea to try.

"Take a shower with me!"

"What?"

"Nothing will happen, Emily! I promise! I just need to feel connected to you, flesh to flesh."

"Yeah. Not sure that I can trust you in the shower, Paige."

"Emily, _please_!" Emily heard the desperation in her voice. "I _promise_!"

She knew that Paige needed a physical connection. She had figured that out before they started dating, the way that Paige would always put her arm around her when they talked, especially on that night when they fell asleep together for the first time. And she trusted Paige not to violate her trust. "Come on," she said at last.

* * *

Paige stood behind Emily under the hot spray, her hands around Emily's waist, holding her tighter. She was taking long whiffs of Emily's hair. "Mmm - I love the smell of your shampoo. It reminds me of that night when you fell asleep in my arms."

Her naked body against Paige's, the heat of the water, and the way that Paige was talking got to be too much for Emily. She noticed that she had been subtly grinding into Paige. She reached for the handle to turn off the water. "I can't do this, Paige. I trust you, but I don't trust myself!"

Paige put her hand on top of Emily's to stop her. "Wait!" she begged. "Touch yourself... for me... please, Emily."

Emily was frozen in place by shock.

"I'm sorry. I mean, if that's not breaking your promise to your mom. If it is, then we can get out of the shower."

Emily turned around and looked Paige in the eye as she slipped her fingers into herself. Paige, seeing what she was doing, kissed her deeply, and then moved her lips to find that spot on Emily's neck. Her hands were firmly working on Emily's breasts. Emily's senses were overloaded. She lost her command of the English language, yelling out half-words and words that made no sense. Paige didn't let up on her neck, her earlobe, her mouth, and her breasts. Soon, she felt Emily stumble and lean into her for support. Paige stopped her before she removed her fingers and allowed them pass under the stream of water. "Wait!" she begged. "I really need to taste you!"

Emily withdrew her fingers and surrendered them to Paige who, upon tasting them, reflexively moved both hands from Emily's body onto her own center. Emily stroked the abs that she loved so much as she sucked on Paige's breasts. Her hand strayed behind Paige's back, where she lightly caressed Paige's ass and teased a fingernail up the length of Paige's spine. Paige began to moan, and Emily kissed her, swallowing every breath that emanated from Paige's throat. Before long, Paige's body was spasming, and Emily helped her lean against of the shower, rubbing from her shoulders to her elbows as she came down. Paige allowed herself to sink down to the tub, thoroughly spent. "Thank you," she said, softly. "I really needed that."

Emily got out of the shower and wrapped a towel around herself. She took Paige by the hand and helped her out of the tub, wrapping her in a towel. They held each other for a long time.

"I really needed it, too," Emily admitted.


	31. Life is a Highway

As Paige leaned into the turn where the track curved, Emily held on a little tighter. It wasn't so much for stability through the turn; it was just what Emily felt at that moment. Behind the darkened visor on her helmet, her face bore a huge smile. She rested her head on her girlfriend's shoulder. She sensed that the smile on Paige's face was just as wide.

It felt as if everything were happening in slow motion. Perhaps it was just the way that her mind wanted to savor that moment; to hold onto it as tightly as she was gripping onto Paige.

Emily's mind searched for a word to describe how she felt at that very moment. The word that it came up with was "Content."

The last year had been amazing. The summer had been incredible.

When her dad got back from Texas, they all went down to Cape May for a long weekend. Paige stayed in Emily's room, as her friends had done since she was little, whenever she invited one of them along on family trips. Pam and Wayne trusted that nothing would go on with them in the same room. Nothing _did_ go on, but she and Paige were happy for the chance to be able to fall asleep together for a few nights.

Emily divided her time at Cape May among her dad, her mom, and Paige, making sure that her mom had plenty of one-on-one time with her dad. But the best times were those that they all spent together, taking leisurely walks along the beach, riding up and down the boardwalk in a rented surrey, or just relaxing in the hotel playing games or watching TV.

* * *

Back in Rosewood, Emily enjoyed watching Paige bond with her dad.

Paige was the mechanic's assistant that her dad had always wanted, genuinely excited about puttering around in the garage with him. He poked good-natured fun at the car that Paige had bought at Stanford; it might be okay for California, but the East Coast demanded a machine with more muscle.

Paige ran PTs with him early in the morning, decidedly without the kid gloves that she used when she went running with Emily's mom. There was a lot of posturing and trash-talking, and a lot of joy, when they returned home, at having a worthy opponent to push them on their runs.

And then, there was the gun range. Wayne Fields had taught his daughter how to handle a weapon responsibly, and she dutifully paid attention. Paige, for her part, wasn't just listening out of obligation. She enjoyed the experience as much as he did. On their "Runs and Guns" mornings, they sandwiched breakfast with Pam and Emily between the two activities. Breakfast was filled with animated conversations ("foreplay," as Emily called it, much to her mom's chagrin) about things like muzzle velocity, stopping power, and spread accuracy. Then it was just the two of them again, headed out to the range.

But these bonding experiences were only runners up to the ultimate prize: Wayne's '02 Indian.

Wayne Fields was fanatical about gun safety, and he made damn sure that Paige knew what she was doing before he allowed her to hold a gun on his watch. The hurdles that he made her go through before he would take her to the gun range were nothing compared to what he put her through before he would let her ride his Baby. (He immediately blushed at that choice of words.) He was concerned about Paige's safety and about the bike, but, above all, he was concerned because Paige was determined to take Emily riding with her.

Pam was with him on that count. She had never been a fan of the motorcycle to begin with, much less of having a teenager at the throttle with Emily on the rear seat. It took a good bit of convincing on Wayne's part to get her to come around. After he watched Paige handle the bike and saw that she wasn't reckless or negligent, he agreed that it would be safe.

"But she's not even twenty years old!" Pam protested. "And that _thing_ isn't safe!" Paige, whose head was swiveling back and forth between the two as they hashed it out, recalled when Emily made a similar argument about motorcycles.

"Oh, Momma," Wayne said, "I was riding motorcycles at that age. And they're only going to be going on the track; it's not as though she'll be taking Emmy for a cruise on the autobahn at rush hour!"

"I hate that thing!" Pam exclaimed, not bothering to refute her husband's argument, but getting down to her real point. "I don't know why you bought it."

"You used to love it, Pam!" he reminded her. "Remember how you used to love going out with me on my first bike, giving it a little gas and seeing what she could do?"

"Well, I was a lot younger then, Wayne," she conceded.

"So are Paige and Emmy."

"I don't know, Wayne. I don't know." Wringing her hands, she turned her attention to her daughter. "Emmy, do _you_ want to get on that _thing_ with Paige? You trust her?"

 _Oh, yes! God, yes! Fuck yes!_ Emily thought. "Sure, I trust her," she said, fighting hard not to show how highly she was anticipating it. "I mean, she took the class and got the certificate, and we all _know_ how responsible she is."

Pam still had her doubts, but she remembered what it was like to be young.

And so it was that Emily found herself seated on the back of her father's motorcycle, holding on as tight as she dared to the woman whom she loved.

Paige slowed the bike to a halt, and she and Emily dismounted. Paige removed her helmet and shook her hair out, and Emily took in the full spectacle. Emily had been right about the expression on Paige's face: Her smile stretched as wide as the width of her face could accommodate. After Emily got an eyeful of Paige's dismount and of the way that she shook out her hair, the expression on her face became much more serious. She was grateful that she still had on her helmet, and that the shaded visor shielded the lascivious look on her face from her father's eyes.

When Emily removed the helmet she wrapped her arm around Paige's shoulder. She loved her father dearly, but, at that moment, she really wished that he were somewhere else – so that she could feel free to put that arm much lower behind Paige. She gave Paige a kiss, and, soon, they had both dropped their helmets and forgotten all about the presence of Lieutenant Colonel Wayne Fields. Something about the ride – the adrenaline rush, the smell of leather, the feel of Paige's body against hers, the power of the machine that had been vibrating beneath her – had gotten to Emily. But it was more than that. It was the feeling of freedom; of potential. They were young and in love, with the road stretched out infinitely before them. This was all that she wanted in life: To hold on tight to Paige as they navigated the road of life together.

* * *

Epilogue

As their summer drew to a close, Paige joined Emily and her Rosewood friends at Spencer's family's shore house. The whole gang was there, and they wondered how many more times all of them would be able to get together like as time went on and their lives diverged.

On one otherwise forgettable moonlit night, with a light breeze blowing salty air through the open curtains of their bedroom, and to the sounds of the gentle tide pushing in and out against the shore, Paige and Emily earned the X through the outline of New Jersey on Paige's map of the United States.

Spencer and Aria, separately, each found an opportunity to get Paige by herself and ask her what her intentions were with Emily. It was along the lines of her conversation with Hanna back in Stanford: She really loves you, you could really devastate her if you treated her wrong, but I know that you wouldn't do that. Aria took it a step further.

"Do you see the two of you married?"

Paige didn't have to tell her face to smile. The smile came on its own as she nodded vigorously. "I mean, we've never discussed it in so many words, but we both know that that's where things are headed."

After their chat, Paige went to find Emily. She found her lying on their bed, reading. Paige lay down behind her and threw an arm across her waist, drawing herself in close. She pressed her face onto Emily's, chin on her shoulder, and said, "I really love your friends."

Emily reached back and cupped Paige's face, smiling, but not looking up from her book.

"They're really protective of you," Paige added, and Emily put her open book down and turned around to look Paige in the eyes.

"Why?" she said, scrunching her eyebrows in concern. "Did they say something?" She put her hand behind Paige's neck, stroking her cheek with her thumb.

Paige reached out an arm to Emily's shoulder. "I was just noticing the way that they look at me now, compared to the way that they looked at me at Thanksgiving, when we were first going out. Back then, they were scrutinizing my every move, trying to see whether or not I was really serious about us. Now, they look at every move in that 'Aw, isn't that adorable?' kind of way."

Emily relaxed and rolled back over, not picking up her book. "Pru called me, you know?"

"Really?" Paige asked, not knowing that Emily was continuing the conversation. "What did she need?"

Emily smiled and turned over again. "It was right after we got back to Rosewood. I guess it was the same conversation that you and Hanna had back in Stanford, when I was in my meeting with Coach Meehan."

Paige confessed that Spencer and Aria had also had the talk with her. "Aria even asked me whether or not you and I were going to get married!" she admitted, trying to laugh it off.

Emily moved her head back a little, so that she could see all of Paige's face. "What did you say?" she asked, concerned. She was worried that Paige had told Aria that she hadn't given it any serious thought, and she was almost equally worried that Paige was about to jump off the bed and propose."

"I told her that we haven't really talked about it, but that we both know that it's where this is all leading."

"Mmm. Good answer," Emily said with a kiss to Paige's lips.

Emily rolled over and idly stroked the arm that Paige had wrapped around her waist. "What about kids?" she asked. They might as well keep going, now that they were on the subject.

"Definitely!" Paige replied. "Right?"

"Oh yeah, definitely." A moment later, Emily probed further. "Boys or girls? Both?"

"Yeah, sure." Paige replied. "Anything, really. Just as long as they look like you. Or me. Or not. I just want to raise a family with you, Emily."

Emily turned over and gave Paige a long, deep kiss. She put her arm behind Paige's back, and her arm started to ache from pulling Paige closer and closer.

Paige pulled away from Emily long enough to get up, kick her sandals off, and lock the door.

* * *

On their last night at the shore, the friends built a fire in the pit in the backyard and sat around reminiscing about the past and planning for the future. With the wind blowing in off of the ocean, it started to get cool when the sun went down, and Emily grabbed Paige's hand in both of her own and led her inside. She sat Paige down at the kitchen table and made a peanut butter and jelly sandwich that they shared. They weren't really talking. They were just enjoying each other and the moment.

Paige couldn't take her eyes off the unfathomably beautiful woman across the table from her. Nor could she control the smile on her face. A smile made its way across Emily's face, too. "What?" she asked Paige, at last.

"We just have the best life, don't we?"

"I know, right? Everything is just so… perfect. It's as if we're characters in someone's movie."

"Someone who loves us very much."

"And someone who loves happy endings. Like, a Hallmark Movie Channel movie, or something."

"Do you think that life's always going to be like this?"

Emily thought it over before she opened her mouth to speak. "I don't know, Paige. But I know that, wherever life takes us, whatever the circumstances, we'll be together. So it's going to be perfect."

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading! :)


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